Turkey’s ‘Aksungur’ UAV hits Target 30 km Away with New Indigenous Missile

Turkey’s ‘Aksungur’ medium-altitude, long-endurance drone hit a test target 30 km away with a new domestically made missile, Chairperson of the Defense Industries Presidency (SSB) Ismail Demir announced Sunday.

The new projectile, named KGK-SIHA-82, weighs 340 kilograms (750 pounds), and was fired by the UAV the first time, Ismail Demir wrote on his official Twitter account.

In a separate statement, Aksungur’s manufacturer, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) said the test firing took place over the Black Sea in the province of Sinop and at an altitude of 20,000 feet.

The shooting range will be increased to 45 kilometers with the same ammunition soon, TAI said.

The KGK-SIHA-82 has been developed by TÜBITAK Defense Industries Research and Development Institute (SAGE).

Last September, Aksungur demonstrated an ability to stay in the air for 28 hours carrying 12 MAM-L smart micro munitions (MAM), developed by Roketsan.  The Aksungar is capable of staying in the air for up to 49 hours; though with what payload weight is not known

The combination of long endurance, target acquisition capability and armed with a long range missile would add significantly to the Turkish military’s ability to attack targets with drones from stand-off distance.

Aksungur can carry up to 750 kilograms of payload and is capable of long-endurance operations at an altitude of up to 40,000 feet, Turkish media reported.

Aksungur has previously test-fired an MK-82 general-purpose bombs with a Roketsan-developed Teber guidance kit weighing which converts conventional bombs into precision smart ammunition.