Just a day after Turkey’s home-grown stealthy fighter aircraft was seen in full prior to its official rollout, yet another ambitious Turkish air combat aircraft has officially broken cover.
The Turkish Aircraft Industries (TAI) ANKA-3 MIUS (which stands for National Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle System in Turkish) is a low-observable flying wing unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV). The aircraft is roughly the size of a light fighter and is designed as a survivable, relatively long-endurance, strike, surveillance, and electronic warfare platform. Suppression and destruction of enemy air defenses are also said to be key intended roles for the ANKA-3. It’s thought that ANKA-3 is envisioned to work in conjunction with Turkey’s manned TF-X stealthy fighter for certain mission applications.
ANKA-3, which follows an increasingly diverse and advanced stable of Turkish drones, including the now famous Bayraktar TB2 family, features external hardpoints for munitions and fuel, as well internal weapons bays. It’s powered by a single turbofan engine.
Turkey’s Vice President Fuat Oktay stated the following about ANKA-3 in a budget-related speech in December of 2022:
“ANKA-3, with its jet…
