As part of efforts addressing emergency scenarios in which runways are unavailable, AKINCI and Bayraktar TB2 UCAVs successfully landed on and took off from the Manisa–Balıkesir Highway. The activity was carried out in coordination with the Ministry of National Defeanse, the General Directorate of Highways, and Baykar, and it demonstrated the ability of indigenous platforms to perform missions without relying on runways.

MANISA
NOVEMBER 13, 2026

The first application has been carried out under field studies that Baykar launched so that its indigenously developed unmanned aerial vehicles can operate without interruption even when runways are unavailable. In an emergency response exercise based on site surveys at various locations across Türkiye and on the routes identified through them, indigenous platforms used a highway as a runway.

THEY TOOK OFF FROM DIFFERENT BASES AND LANDED ON A HIGHWAY
In the exercise conducted on November 12, three indigenous aircraft took off from different bases and converged on the same point. A Bayraktar TB2 that Baykar uses for training and test activities took off from Keşan. An AKINCI took off from Çorlu, and a second Bayraktar TB2 from the Turkish Land Forces Command inventory took off from İzmir. All three successfully landed on and took off from the Manisa–Balıkesir Highway.

ALL PLATFORMS TO GAIN THE SAME CAPABILITY
The operational concept developed for emergency response scenarios is being expanded to cover all unmanned aerial vehicles developed by Baykar. Under current planning, the goal is for all of Baykar’s indigenous platforms to be able to land on and take off from suitable highway routes without relying on runways. This includes KIZILELMA, Türkiye’s first indigenous unmanned fighter jet, and Bayraktar TB3, which can take off from and land on ships with short runways.

INTER-AGENCY COORDINATION
During the activity, conducted in coordination with the Ministry of National Defense (MSB), the General Directorate of Highways (KGM), and Baykar, all safety measures were taken along the route while fire and ambulance teams stood by. The Manisa Governorship, the Provincial Gendarmerie Command, and the Provincial Police Department enforced the necessary security measures along the highway. The exercise was also observed on site by teams from the service commands of the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF), as well as by teams from the General Directorate of Security, the Gendarmerie General Command, and the Coast Guard Command under the Ministry of Interior.

EXPORT CHAMPION
Having funded all its projects entirely from its own resources since its inception, Baykar continued to be the world’s largest exporter in the unmanned aerial vehicle segment in 2025. Baykar has maintained its leadership in the global UCAV market over the past three years and broke its own record with an export volume of $2.2 billion in 2025. Deriving 90% of its revenue from exports in recent years, Baykar has become the driving force of Türkiye’s high-technology exports.

BAYKAR: THE WORLD’S LARGEST UAV COMPANY
Baykar ranked among the top 10 exporting companies across all sectors in Türkiye in 2023, 2024, and 2025 and won the Export Champions Award. According to data from the Defense Industry Agency (SSB) and the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM), it was the export leader of the defense and aerospace sector in 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024. Baykar single-handedly accounted for one-third of sector exports in 2023 and one-quarter of total defense and aerospace sector exports in 2024, propelling Türkiye to a leading position in the global UCAV export market. As the world’s largest unmanned aerial vehicle company, Baykar has signed export agreements with a total of 40 countries: 37 countries for the Bayraktar TB2 UCAV and 16 countries so far for the AKINCI UCAV.