Unmanned Helicopter Alpin supported the operation for the first time
Recently, footage of the use of a rotary-winged unmanned aerial vehicle in an anti-terrorist operation caused great excitement. According to experts, the concept, which is a ‘first’ for Turkey, is quite critical, and the Turkish defense industry will make a name for itself in the world with its national platforms in this class after S/UAVs.
Turkey’s fight against terrorism has become much more effective with the indigenous/national and highly advanced systems developed in recent years. The Turkish Armed Forces, which combines high-tech products with specialized personnel and updates its approaches on the battlefield according to this new concept, has recently broken new ground.
In the images reflected from the operation area, it was seen that the military unit was supported by the unmanned rotary wing platform Alpin. Although we have the information that Alpin is in the inventory, this image was actually quite critical in terms of showing that the platform in question was used directly in a real operation for the first time.
With its features, Alpin will meet a critical need for security forces.
Currently, S/UAVs are undergoing very successful tests
Defense Industry Researcher Kadir Doğan opens a brief parenthesis before moving on to the operational image of the Alpin. He reminds us that Turkey’s ‘medium altitude, long endurance’ concept products are already among the best in the world.
Bayraktar TB-2, Akıncı, ANKA and Aksungur are the first platforms that come to mind at this point… “Later on, we saw the development of offensive unmanned aerial vehicles such as KIZILELMA and ANKA-3,” Doğan says, emphasizing that this is critical for Turkey to maintain its dominance in this field in the future.
Such platforms can be used not only for carrying cargo, but also for different missions.
A new beginning for Turkey
However, he explains that there are two other main classes of drones that are increasingly being used on the battlefield and for which Turkey is making significant investments. He says these are called ‘Under Cloud UAVs and Rotary Wing UAVs’.
It is known that many companies produce different platforms for sub-cloud UAVs. Doğan draws attention to this situation and says, “It is not possible to talk about the same situation for rotary-wing UAVs. Turkey is just entering this field.”
Kadir Doğan points out that there are not many products in the world in the field of rotary-wing UAVs, and continues as follows:
“The products developed in the world are also being actively used. It is now clear that these products will be included in the new generation warfare concepts…
Alpin is constantly developing itself according to this new process. Its primary target is military or civilian logistics. However, it may also be used for reconnaissance, surveillance and intelligence purposes in the future.
Alpin, developed by TİTRA, is one of the few products in the world that has managed to become operational. First of all, the operational use of Alpin is very important, as this is a first for Turkey.
Rotary wing platforms also have some advantages over fixed wing platforms. In particular, easier landing and take-off on mobile/fixed platforms, high payload capacity and mobility in difficult conditions are among their prominent features.”
Great for the Navy
Although the first video shows Alpin taking off in support of a unit on land, Doğan believes that Rotary Wing UAVs are also ideal for naval platforms.
Doğan explains that the use of such platforms on naval platforms is much more common in the world, and concludes his words as follows:
“The main reason for this is that it is very difficult for fixed-wing UAVs to operate in sea conditions. It is much easier for rotary-wing platforms… For this reason, UAVs of this type are becoming the preferred choice. For this reason, I think Alpin will be very useful especially in naval platforms.
However, we need to open one more parenthesis… It is very valuable that private sector companies such as TİTRA have products for operational use in such areas. All the products available in the world in this field are being used in new operational concepts and are in very serious demand, especially by NATO armies.
It is not far-fetched for Alpin to become a product family and achieve export success in the international market with different payload integrations for different missions.
If Turkey’s success in MALE, Tactical/Strategic and Attack UAVs is carried to both Under Cloud and Rotary Wing Platforms with products and companies such as these, Turkey’s leadership in this field will become unquestionable and Turkey can set the trends in the world.”
Source Unmanned Helicopter Alpin supported the operation for the first time
