Bayraktar TB3 drone opens new naval frontier in move echoing Sultan Mehmed’s historic feat Photo

Selçuk Bayraktar, Chairman of Baykar, said the Bayraktar TB3 UAV had ushered in a new era in naval warfare by operating from short-runway vessels—an achievement U.S. and Israeli rivals had sought to be first to reach.

"Just as Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror revolutionised amphibious warfare centuries ago by moving ships over land, today the Bayraktar TB3 has launched a new chapter in naval combat," Caliber.Az quotes Bayraktar as saying during a public address.

Selçuk Bayraktar:

“Yüzyıllar önce Fatih Sultan Mehmet Han nasıl ki gemileri karadan yürütüp amfibi harekatta paradigma dönüşümü yaptıysa, bugün de kısa pistli gemilerden otomatik bir şekilde inip kalkabilen Bayraktar TB3, başarılı bir şekilde hem hedeflerin keşfini yapıp hem de… pic.twitter.com/5FEhYVKrVZ

— SavunmaSanayiST.com (@SavunmaSanayiST) May 15, 2025

The drone, capable of taking off and landing automatically on short-decked ships, has successfully conducted reconnaissance and strike operations at sea, he said.

Bayraktar also noted that competitors had been eyeing the same capability. "A leading firm from the United States and another from Israel had claimed they would be the first in the world to achieve this," he said. "At the time, the race had already begun. But it was the Bayraktar TB3 and the Turkish Navy that crossed the finish line first."

The TB3, which follows Baykar’s earlier TB2 model used extensively in conflicts from Libya to Ukraine, is designed to operate from Türkiye’s TCG Anadolu amphibious assault ship and expand the country's drone capabilities at sea.

By Aghakazim Guliyev