At the end of November 2025, Turkish drone maker Baykar made world news: its unmanned, jet-powered combat aircraft Bayraktar KIZILELMA fired a real air-to-air missile for the first time and hit a fast-flying test target over the Black Sea. It was no simple exercise — KIZILELMA detected the target with its own radar, launched the missile and destroyed the target at a distance. This is reportedly the very first time worldwide that a drone has shot down a jet target with a radar-guided air-to-air missile.
The test took place off the coast of Sinop and was carried out by a team of Turkish aerospace and defence companies. The radars, missiles and the drone itself, among other things, are entirely “made in Turkey”.
What exactly is KIZILELMA — and what can it do?
KIZILELMA is not a classic propeller drone or observation drone, but a fully fledged jet-powered “unmanned combat air vehicle” (UCAV) — designed to fight air battles on its own. According to Baykar and Turkish defence sources:
- KIZILELMA has a maximum take-off weight of around 8,500 kg, with a payload capacity of about 1,500 kg for weapons or sensors.
- In terms of performance: it reaches a cruising speed of about Mach 0.6 and can — reportedly — reach around Mach 0.9. According to Baykar, it has a combat radius of approximately 500 nautical miles (~900 km).
- It is equipped with modern Turkish systems: an active AESA radar (Aselsan’s MURAD AESA radar), an electro-optical/infrared targeting system, and it can carry several types of domestic munitions, from air-to-air missiles to precision bombs.
- Thanks to a relatively low radar signature (“low radar cross-section”) and modern sensors, it is designed to evade enemy air defences as much as possible — or at least to be detected only late.
Previous tests had already shown that KIZILELMA could successfully carry and drop precision bombs and air-to-ground weapons — but this recent test proved for the first time that it can independently complete an air-to-air kill chain: detection, tracking, lock-on and destruction.
Video Baykar Technologies
What does the manufacturer say — and why is this a big deal?
Baykar says the test opens a “new chapter in aviation history”. According to the company, this flight marks the first time an unmanned combat aircraft has been able to take out a jet target at a distance — all with domestically developed technology.
Its chief, Selçuk Bayraktar, tweeted that this achievement “opens the doors to a new era in air power” and thanked the teams involved and the national defence industry.
For Turkey this is strategically important: it proves that the country is not dependent on foreign weapon systems to develop modern air power. Everything — from aircraft to missile to radar — is made in-house.
Why this is especially relevant right now:
The context makes it extra interesting: Turkey (for now) did not receive any aircraft from the F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter programme — a loss for anyone looking at modern stealth combat capability. But by developing a stealth-like, jet-powered drone such as KIZILELMA, Turkey can bet on another route: cheap, unmanned combat aircraft instead of expensive manned stealth jets.
If KIZILELMA and similar drones can operate en masse or in significant numbers, Turkey could in theory assemble an air force that is a match for a stealth fleet — possibly with even more flexibility. And with drones, you remove the risk of casualties on your own side.
Moreover, in the recent test KIZILELMA flew in formation with regular fighter aircraft such as the F-16 Fighting Falcon. That shows Turkey is aiming at “manned-unmanned teaming”: having manned jet fighters and unmanned jet drones work together — sharing sensor information, designating targets and responding flexibly to threats.
In other words: even without F-35s, Turkey has found a way to modernise its air force — through drones.
Image Bayraktar.
What does this mean for the future?
The consequences could be significant. A stealth-like drone such as KIZILELMA that can fire air-to-air missiles takes the idea of “combat drones” to a level where they can even take on air defences, air battles and manned combat.
If such drones are produced and deployed in series, it could mean an air force with many more flying platforms, dispersed, flexible and – because drones are unmanned – less vulnerable in terms of human lives.
It also has an international effect: countries that always relied on manned aircraft may take a fresh look at unmanned aircraft for air superiority.
For Turkey itself, it is a strategic leap. With a fully domestic value chain for aircraft, radar and missiles, Ankara shows that it is not solely dependent on Western exports. And in regional conflicts — or in scenarios with air defences or a hostile air force.
