Croatia to purchase six Bayraktar TB2 drones in $95 million deal
Several customers are set to operate the platform including Bosnia and Herzegovina and Romania. (Photo: Baykar)
The drones will be used to cover radio coverage in Croatia in both stationary and mobile configurations, according to Croatia’s Minister of Defence, and will be equipped with an initial set of weapons.
Croatia’s government has approved the purchase of Bayraktar TB2 drones, Croatia’s Defence Ministry officials have said. The overall package for these six drones, which reportedly also includes training in Turkey, is said to amount to US$95 million.
Ivan Anušić, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence said that Croatia’s Armed Forced “expressed the need for priority and urgent procurement of the armed Bayraktar TB2 system, and the company submitted an informative offer and a proposal for the Bayraktar TB2 configuration based on the ‘total package’ model”.
According to Anušić, the deal for the TB2 “is based on six aircraft equipped with electro-optical cameras for reconnaissance, including the initial set of weapons, and ensures double radio coverage of the entire territory of Croatia in stationary and mobile version”.
The package is also said to include a command-and-control centre, training simulator, ground monitoring and control stations, as well as a set of spares sufficient for 4,000 flight hours. This includes all necessary equipment and maintenance tools, a warranty in duration of two years or until reaching 4,000 flight hours, stay of experts in Croatia for a period of two years, training in Turkey and transport of the entire package to Croatia.
The Bayraktar TB2 is a medium-altitude, long-endurance UAV developed by Turkish firm Baykar. According to the company, it can carry out ISR and armed attack missions, and has a payload capacity of 150kg.
Related Programmes in Defence Insight
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Air Warfare
-
![How the UK’s New Medium Helicopter award strengthens AW149’s European prospects]()
How the UK’s New Medium Helicopter award strengthens AW149’s European prospects
The UK advanced its long-delayed New Medium Helicopter programme in March with a £1 billion order for 23 Leonardo AW149s. While the deal could provide a foundation for further UK and European export orders, funding pressures and previous delays continue to cloud the programme’s future.
-
![Canadian observer status reinforces GCAP’s strength in emerging ‘middle power’ bloc]()
Canadian observer status reinforces GCAP’s strength in emerging ‘middle power’ bloc
The significant setback seen by FCAS earlier this year has secured GCAP’s position as Europe’s future sixth-generation fighter, while Canada’s potential observer status could push the programme into the next stage.
-
![Proteus: Forging the future of autonomous rotorcraft]()
Proteus: Forging the future of autonomous rotorcraft
As the home of British helicopters, Leonardo has worked with the UK Ministry of Defence for over a decade to advance technologies underpinning uncrewed rotorcraft. Today, in partnership with UK Defence Innovation and the Royal Navy, Leonardo is spearheading the next step in that journey: from remotely piloted technologies to fully autonomous systems.
-
![US Air Force to add new capabilities to its in-service and future T-7A fleet]()
US Air Force to add new capabilities to its in-service and future T-7A fleet
As the T-7A programme recovers from delays and rising costs, the USAF is signalling new opportunities in anti-jamming GPS, collision avoidance, advanced flight controls and pilot interface improvements.
-
![“Fifth-gen capability without the cost”: how autonomous strike can change the face of air warfare]()
“Fifth-gen capability without the cost”: how autonomous strike can change the face of air warfare
In Conversation… Armor Harris, Senior Vice President for Aircraft at Shield AI, talks to Shephard’s Gerrard Cowan about why cost-effective autonomous aircraft are a game-changer for air forces worldwide, and the key roles played by VTOL and AI as enabling technologies.
