Turkey's 'Alpagut' Loitering Munition Combines UAV with Cruise Missile

Turkey’s STM and Roketsan have joined forces to develop a loitering munition (or Kamikaze drone) called Alpagut, which also doubles up as a cruise missile.

The Alpagut concept was introduced at SAHA Expo 2022 currently being held in Istanbul.

Alpagut is dubbed to be effective against mobile or fixed land and sea targets, radar and communication systems, lightly armored land or sea vehicles, and critical facilities such as command centers, Turkish media reported.

The munition, which will have an operational radius of 60 km, an airtime of more than 60 minutes and different types of warheads, can be used in both single and swarm concepts.

Related news: Turkey Introduces New Kamikaze Drone “Deli”

Alpagut can detect a target without being noticed with its two-mode seeker head, and its position is not affected by jamming systems. The target can be pinpointed with the precision guidance-control drive system. In addition to all these features, the system also offers significant advantages to its users with its fire-and-forget feature.

Sharing features of both cruise missiles and UCAVs, a loitering munition means that a munition loiters or waits passively, around the target area for some time and attacks only once a target is located.

A concealed or hidden target can be eliminated with a loitering munition fast enough without placing high-value platforms close to the target area.

Alpagut is expected to be integrated into UCAVs and helicopters, namely Akıncı, Aksungur, Anka and Bayraktar TB3 UCAVs and Gökbey and Atak-2 helicopters; on land platforms such as armored vehicles and unmanned land vehicles; and on naval platforms such as MILGEM (National Ship) Ada-class corvettes and unmanned marine crafts.