Baykar Technologies has announced a major performance milestone for its Bayraktar Kizilelma unmanned fighter jet, confirming that the aircraft successfully completed a test flight at a sustained cruise speed of Mach 0.8. The achievement, detailed in a statement posted on Baykar’s official X account, marks a significant step forward for Türkiye’s ambitions in jet-powered unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs). With design parameters approaching those of traditional manned fighters, Kizilelma underscores Ankara’s commitment to redefining the future of air combat while signaling the rapid evolution of high-performance unmanned aviation.
Designed as a stealthy, single-engine fighter capable of operating from both conventional and short-runway platforms—including the Turkish Navy’s light aircraft carrier TCG Anadolu—Kizilelma is configured to carry roughly 1.5 tonnes of ordnance internally and underwing. Its maximum take-off weight ranges from 6 to 8.5 tonnes depending on mission configuration. Previously, the aircraft’s typical cruise speed was reported at Mach 0.6, with maximum speeds approaching Mach 0.9. The recent flight demonstrates the ability to sustain a cruise speed of Mach 0.8, pushing the platform closer to fourth-generation fighter performance envelopes and marking a departure from conventional medium-altitude, long-endurance (MALE) drones.
The aircraft’s airframe reflects a combination of stealth-oriented shaping, canard-delta aerodynamics, twin canted vertical stabilizers, and internal weapons bays optimized for carrier and short-field operations. Sensor and mission systems include an active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, infrared search and track (IRST) capabilities, and electro-optical targeting systems, enabling multi-sensor situational awareness and beyond-visual-range (BVR) engagements. According to Baykar, the integration of these systems is designed to allow Kizilelma to operate independently or in coordinated formations with manned fighters.
Kizilelma’s propulsion architecture has been developed incrementally. Early prototypes utilized the Ivchenko-Progress AI-25TLT, a non-afterburning turbofan delivering 16–17 kN of thrust, sufficient for initial airframe and flight-control validation. The current high-performance configuration employs the AI-322F, a low-bypass afterburning turbofan producing approximately 24–25 kN in dry thrust and around 44 kN with afterburner engaged. The afterburner is critical for operations requiring rapid acceleration, short-deck take-offs, high-subsonic manoeuvres, and transonic flight control. Baykar has previously demonstrated afterburner take-offs on later prototypes, and the latest flight at Mach 0.8 confirms that propulsion, thermal management, and flight-control laws are converging to deliver performance comparable to crewed fighter jets, highlighting the technological maturity of Türkiye’s unmanned aviation sector.
Operationally, achieving a Mach 0.8 cruise speed represents the culmination of a methodical development program. Kizilelma’s genesis traces back to Türkiye’s MIUS (Combatant Unmanned Aircraft System) program in the early 2010s. The platform first flew in December 2022 and has since undergone a series of progressively complex test flights, including automatic taxi, take-off and landing sequences, high-speed manoeuvres, and repeated flight cycles to validate flight-control algorithms. The UCAV has flown alongside F-16s during public demonstrations and conducted autonomous formation flights between two Kizilelma prototypes, highlighting initial “smart fleet autonomy” capabilities.
In parallel, the platform has demonstrated weaponized operations. Notably, Kizilelma successfully fired a Gökdoğan beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile using its MURAD AESA radar for detection and guidance, validating the concept of a UCAV independently executing BVR engagements. The Mach 0.8 cruise confirmation now complements this suite of capabilities, linking aerodynamics, propulsion, mission systems, and weapons employment into a coherent operational concept.
From a tactical perspective, a high-subsonic cruise capability allows Kizilelma to operate within the same time-space envelope as manned fighters and advanced air-defense systems. This enables rapid repositioning across combat radii extending several hundred nautical miles while remaining synchronized with strike packages, ISR platforms, or aerial refueling operations. At Mach 0.8, the aircraft can function as a loyal wingman, sensor node, or weapons platform without becoming a limiting factor in formation tempo. The performance aligns Kizilelma with other “loyal wingman” programs, such as the US Air Force’s XQ-58 Valkyrie and Australia’s MQ-28 Ghost Bat, which prioritize upper-subsonic regimes for operational flexibility. Unlike traditional MALE drones, Kizilelma can escort manned aircraft, conduct electronic warfare missions, act as a decoy, and employ rapid high-subsonic manoeuvres to complicate interception.
The strategic implications for Türkiye are significant. A jet-powered UCAV with internal weapons carriage, afterburner capability, and autonomous BVR engagement potential enhances the operational flexibility of the Turkish Air Force. It offers complementary capabilities to manned fighters such as the F-16 and the upcoming KAAN program, enabling manned–unmanned teaming, saturation attacks, and persistent surveillance or strike presence over critical regions, including the Black Sea, the Aegean, and the Eastern Mediterranean. Kizilelma also serves as a technological showcase for Türkiye’s defense industrial base, integrating advanced aerodynamics, software-defined mission systems, and international propulsion cooperation, while laying the groundwork for increasing indigenous subsystem content in future iterations.
Internationally, Kizilelma positions Türkiye among a select group of countries developing jet-powered unmanned fighters and expands Ankara’s portfolio as a supplier of high-technology air systems. The platform offers prospective partners a combination of advanced performance, operational flexibility, and risk management compared with traditional manned aircraft. It also underscores Türkiye’s growing capability in developing integrated air combat systems from the ground up, combining autonomy, stealth, and kinetic lethality in a single platform.
Analysts note that the Mach 0.8 cruise milestone consolidates Kizilelma’s transition from a conceptual UCAV to a fully credible, fighter-class platform. The program demonstrates that unmanned aircraft can now operate in high-subsonic regimes, carry advanced weapons, and synchronize with manned formations—effectively bridging the gap between traditional drones and jet-powered combat aircraft. The flight test also reflects Türkiye’s broader ambition to achieve technological sovereignty in airpower, reducing dependence on foreign systems and expanding options for indigenous combat capability.
The development timeline indicates that Baykar is methodically validating every aspect of the aircraft’s operational envelope. Initial flights focused on fundamental aerodynamics, flight control, and basic propulsion. Subsequent tests introduced weapons systems, formation flying, and autonomous mission management. Now, with high-subsonic cruise validated, the focus is expected to shift toward integrating advanced mission profiles, high-density combat scenarios, and more complex carrier operations. These tests will likely explore high-g manoeuvres, extended BVR engagement sequences, and interoperability with other Turkish and allied platforms.
Baykar’s statement emphasizes that Kizilelma is designed for operational adaptability. Its low-observable airframe, internal weapons bays, and canard-delta layout provide a combination of stealth and agility, while sensors such as the AESA radar and IRST system enable multi-dimensional situational awareness. In contested airspace, the aircraft can serve as a decoy, a jammer, or an advanced sensor node, complementing manned fighters and complicating adversary targeting solutions. The Mach 0.8 cruise capability ensures the aircraft can reach operational objectives swiftly while remaining in a synchronized formation with faster manned aircraft.
As unmanned fighter development continues globally, Kizilelma’s milestone is likely to attract attention from both regional competitors and international partners. It demonstrates that jet-powered UCAVs are no longer a distant technological aspiration but a near-term operational reality. Moreover, it highlights how nations like Türkiye are leveraging indigenous innovation, international collaboration, and incremental development strategies to enter the high-performance unmanned fighter arena.
In conclusion, Baykar Technologies’ announcement of a Mach 0.8 cruise for the Bayraktar Kizilelma is a landmark moment in unmanned aviation. The aircraft’s combination of stealth, afterburner capability, internal weapons carriage, and autonomous BVR engagement potential represents a new class of fighter-capable UCAV. For Türkiye, it enhances airpower flexibility, strengthens deterrence, and signals a growing technological independence. For global air combat observers, Kizilelma confirms that high-performance unmanned fighters, capable of operating in the same airspace and tempo as manned jets, are no longer hypothetical—they are actively being tested, refined, and brought closer to operational readiness.
With the latest test, Baykar is moving the Bayraktar Kizilelma from experimental prototype to credible operational asset. The program embodies a convergence of propulsion, aerodynamics, and mission systems under Turkish leadership, establishing a clear precedent for the future of air combat: one in which unmanned fighters operate seamlessly alongside manned aircraft, extend mission reach, and provide advanced capabilities in contested skies. The Mach 0.8 milestone is both a technical and strategic signal, indicating that Türkiye is positioning itself at the forefront of jet-powered unmanned combat aviation, capable of shaping the air combat landscape of the next decade.
