This was the first flight test of munitions on the TB3, which so far flew unarmed, and saw inert MAM-T guided weapons guided on target by the UCAV’s ASELFLIR-500 electro-optical system.
The Turkish aerospace major Baykar announced that, on Jan. 17, 2025, the Bayraktar TB3 UCAV (Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle) achieved a new milestone when prototype PT-3 undertook its first live fire test, releasing two MAM-T munitions on a land target. Overhead surveillance, acquisition and guidance was conducted from the multimode ASELFLIR-500 Electro-Optical Reconnaissance, Surveillance, and Targeting System.
While the MAM-T is product of munitions’ major Roketsan, the EO system has been developed by Aselsan, which specializes in defense electronics and radars. The system flew for the first time on the TB3 in March 2024.
The TB3 took off from Baykar’s Flight Training and Test Center in Keşan, Edirne province. The video released by the company and its chief technology officer Selçuk Bayraktar shows the MAM-T munitions being prepared, with one loaded under each of the TB3’s underwing hardpoints. Both the MAM-T units have blue bands around their front section, indicating they are inert training rounds.
#BayraktarTB3 PT-3, İlk Mühimmat Atış Testini Başarıyla Gerçekleştirdi! ✈️ ⚓️🚀
2️⃣ x MAM-T Mühimmat Atış Testi | Munition Firing Test
🎥 ASELFLIR-500
🎯 Tam İsabet | Bull’s Eye@Baykartech 🤝 @Roketsan 🤝 @Aselsan#MilliTeknolojiHamlesi 🌍🇹🇷 pic.twitter.com/qsiRl6Rgj5
— Selçuk Bayraktar (@Selcuk) January 18, 2025
The video shows that the MAM-T munition under the left wing is released first, and the EO footage captures it hitting the ground, throwing up a small plume of dust. The munition under the right wing follows suit, striking the same target.
“The aircraft successfully launched its first strike using Aselsan’s ASELFLIR-500 Electro-Optical Reconnaissance, Surveillance, and Targeting System, hitting its designated target with pinpoint accuracy,” said Baykar. “Now an armed unmanned aerial vehicle, the Bayraktar TB3 will continue its payload and munitions integration tests as part of its ongoing development process, in line with the predetermined timeline.”
It is not clear if the TB3 has flown previously with the captive carry rounds to assess the airframe stress and aerodynamic handling performance, like the ANKA III flying-wing stealth UCAV did with the TEBER bombs. Baykar’s team already has extensive data from the highly similar TB2, which could have been used to speed up the TB3’s testing. Future tests are likely to involve live munitions and even moving targets, possibly at sea, to test integrated fire control systems.
Baykar TB3 progress
The TB3’s flights so far have been unarmed, under various flight parameters and testing envelopes, validating its propulsion, handling, satellite links, avionics and electronics under diverse conditions. The UCAV is an advanced version of the TB2, and is often described as its naval adaptation, meant to operate from the TCG Anadolu drone/helicopter carrier and amphibious assault ship.
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The Kizilelma UCAV has also been photographed on the Anadolu’s flight deck, although it doesn’t seem to have a specialized naval variant. The drone carrier is expected to control at least six to ten UCAVs simultaneously in maritime strike and surveillance operations.
So far, the Bayraktar TB3 UCAV has recorded 887 hours and 23 minutes of flight time in tests, with the longest duration flight recorded on Dec. 20, 2023. At the time, the UCAV remained airborne for 32 consecutive hours, covering a total distance of 5,700 kilometers.
On Jun. 25, 2024, the TB3 passed its High-Altitude System Performance Test at Keşan, Edirne, reaching an altitude of 36,310 feet. Powered by TEI’s indigenous PD-170 engine, the TB3 also holds the record altitude of 45,118 feet reached by any domestically-built aircraft.
TB3 made its maiden flight in Oct. 2023, and reports a year later said it already has entered mass production, with export orders expected by early 2025, although there are conflicting reports. It is also not clear which prototype design has been frozen to be rolled out on the factory line.
The TB3 made history on Nov. 19, 2024, when the UCAV’s second prototype conducted its first take-off and landing from the TCG Anadolu. Baykar added at the time that the landing was fully autonomous, with the TB3 (prototype PT-2) demonstrating its specially designed braking system which eliminated the use of arrestor hooks, while advanced flight control algorithms kept the aircraft stable despite significant crosswind.
MAM-T, ASELFLIR-500 and TB3 payloads
According to Turkish reports, the MAM-T is four times heavier than the MAM-L variant, and can touch distances ranging between 30 to 80 km, depending upon the release altitude. It has a blast fragmentation warhead and is guided by a laser seeker, with the target lasing provided by the ASELFLIR-500 pod.
“MAM-T Munition was developed for unmanned aerial vehicles and light attack aircraft for use in critical air/ground missions. With its fixed wing structure and improved warhead,MAM-T provides the user with high strike precision and efficiency against fixed and mobile targets at longer ranges,” Roketsan says in the description of the weapon.
Dünya havacılık tarihinde bir ilke imza atarak kısa pistli bir gemiden iniş kalkış yapan ilk SİHA olan Bayraktar TB3, ROKETSAN’ın MAM-T mühimmatı ile gerçekleştirdiği ilk atış testinde hedefi tam isabetle vurdu. pic.twitter.com/wo7KYYTUaP
— Hava Haber (@havahabercom) January 18, 2025
The Aselsan’s ASELFLIR-500 EO ball turret itself has a rare configuration, as it is located on the centerline below the center fuselage, instead of the nose, and is retractable. The company says it can be used on both manned and unmanned rotary and fixed-wing platforms, providing high-resolution infrared, CCD TV, Short-Wave Infrared (SWIR) modes, along with laser target designation, laser range finder, laser spot tracker and laser pointing units.
Beside the MAM-series of air-to-ground guided munitions, in its 280 kg payload on six underwing hardpoints, the TB3 can carry the TOLUN SDB (Small Diameter Bomb), KEMANKEŞ 1 loitering munition, and SUNGUR air-to-air missile. The drone is also compatible with other sensors, such as sonobuoys for ASW (Anti-Submarine Warfare) and an AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) radar.
According to SavunmaSanayiST’s editor Anıl Şahin, TB3 operating from the TCG Anadolu and carrying the MAM-T can “disable” and “render defenseless small and medium displacement naval platforms” like corvettes or frigates” by destroying their sensors or weapon systems.”
