Turkey to Start Mass Production of UGVs

Turkey is preparing to start the mass production of lightweight, medium-class and heavy-class Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs).

On Tuesday, several related agreements were signed at leading local defense company FNSS's facility in the capital Ankara.

“Turkish Unmanned Ground Vehicles are coming!,” Ismail Demir, head of the Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB), posted on his official Twitter account.

Demir added, “With the success we have achieved in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), it is obvious that it is necessary to introduce a similar system for land, sea and even submarine vehicles, even to move toward multirole unmanned vehicles and to work directly with robotic systems.”

“Meeting multiple operational needs will only be possible with the integration and interoperability of such systems,” he said, noting that if Turkey "cannot foresee the developments of tomorrow, some elements in the field of tomorrow could catch the country by surprise.”

Demir said Turkey aims “to introduce some elements on the field that will surprise its opponents.” “Our aim in battle is for our forces to have an opportunity to intimidate their opponents and defeat them, to have a structure that sees without being seen, senses without being sensed and strikes without being hit,” the defense official said.

During the ceremony, the SSB and Havelsan signed an agreement on the development of a heavy class UGV, and the “Declaration of Intent on Mass Production of Medium-Class UGV” was also signed between Aselsan, Best Group, Elektroland and Havelsan.