The Bayraktar Mini UAV is a miniature UAV produced by Turkish company Baykar. Development With the concept of short range day and night aerial reconnaissance and surveillance applications, system design activities started within 2004. Initial prototype Bayraktar A has been developed in 2005, and following successful autonomous flight demonstrations, Baykar has been awarded with a contract to start serial production. The first batch of the order by the Turkish Armed Forces was composed of 19 aircraft and they were mainly deployed to the Southeast parts of Turkey to be used in counterterrorism operations. After hundreds of hours flight trials and feed backs, system was subjected to major modifications and superior versions were started to developed. As a result, Bayraktar B Mini UAV Systems fielded and became operational in December 2007 to be initially operated by the Turkish Armed Forces. Due to its success in the region, the system was also awarded with an export deal to the Qatar Armed Forces in 2012. The developments over the aircraft is being continued. According to the company the most recent version Bayraktar MINI UAV D version has 2 times greater communication range and 3 times higher maximum altitude comparing to its predecessors. Overview Bayraktar-B is a hand-launched, portable UAV system, designed to operate under harsh geographic and meteorological conditions. Bayraktar-B is fielded with small army units, and as of 2021 have recorded more than 100,000 flight hours. System offers a complete autonomy with protective features with a high rank of reliability and easiness for the operators, which makes it a valuable technological asset. Main features are: Automatic waypoint navigation Secure digital communication Home Return and automatic parachute landing in case of lost communication Smart battery management system Remote-range command/control and monitor (WAN Relay) Ground control switching Automatic take off Automatic cruising Automatic belly landing / parachute deployment Joystick assisted semi-automatic control Automatic stall control in case of electric motor dysfunction Automatic spin control in case of very harsh wind conditions Real-time Google Earth integration (display of telemetry data, routes etc. in real-time) On-screen video display Target coordinate estimation within 10 meters accuracy Automatic tracking antenna system Enhancing Situational Awareness by FLIR’s Tau Core Operational history Bayraktar Mini UAS is operational since 2007. Operators Confirmed Operators Of Bayraktar Mini UAV [2007] Turkish Armed Forces [2012] Army [2020] Army [2022] Army Specifications References External links Mini UAV Company Web Site Bayraktar Mini UAV in military