Turkey's Aselsan to Test New, Advanced Drone Electro-Optic System in 2024

Turkey’s Aselsan has announced that the new Aselsan-developed electro-optical reconnaissance, surveillance, and targeting system, the ASELFLIR-600, will undergo its first tests this year.

Last Thursday, Baykar tested the previous version, the ASELFLIR-500, equipped on the Akinci combat drone for the first time. The drone struck a moving target at sea. According to video footage shared by Baykar, the Akıncı utilized the ASELFLIR-500 to destroy an Albatros unmanned surface vessel using smart ammunitions MAM-T and MAM-L, developed by Roketsan.

Aselsan General Manager Ahmet Akyol revealed plans for further advancements. “ASELFLIR-600 is coming to make it even better. We will fly the ASELFLIR-600 this year,” he said.

The electro-optic system represents a technological advancement compared to the Common Aperture Targeting System (CATS), which Aselsan had developed after Canada suspended sales of its optical equipment to Turkey in 2020. Ottawa suggested that the system attached to Turkish-made drones had been used by Azerbaijan while fighting Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh.

The embargoed equipment included Wescam sensors used in Turkey's Bayraktar TB2 drones. The freeze on sales prompted Turkey to capitalize on the opportunity to enhance its indigenous defense capabilities, as stated by Akyol.

Dubbed the "eye" of the indigenous platforms, the electro-optical reconnaissance, surveillance, and targeting system is designed for fixed-wing and rotary-wing airborne platforms, including unmanned aerial vehicles, helicopters, and aircraft.