The Truth About Ukraine's Bayraktar TB2 Drone: Project Ukraine
Video killed the radio star. Have Drones killed the Tank? In this military analysis we learn about how the Bayraktar TB2 Drone was created and its implementation on the battlefield.
I did wonder this, in particular after hearing how effective these drones were in the Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict. Thanks for your take on their usage in Ukraine!
The image you show on 2:09 is not a bayraktar TB1, it is a Bayraktar Akinci, which is a newer, heavier and more advanced and expensive drone developed by the same company. Bayraktar TB1 was just the prototype for TB2.
Two things to mention here,
Calculate the cost of defensive equipment and manpower you need to use for countering TB2? As the drone is difficult to detect, also take into consideration how many systems you need to employ to counter even a single drone?
Secondly,
The production cost of the drone and the weapon systems that come with the TB2. Nothing is high-tech except the software in this system and the software is developed in real war conditions.
Try to buy a similar system from US and you need to pay 10 times more if they ever accepted selling it.
You go and decide to buy a Chinese drone, the price is somewhat similar to TB2 but what about munitions. How about aftersales service and software upgrades which are developing every often. What you buy from China is a high tech kite which doesn't come with aftersales support and upgrades.
If you want something which you can really use in a clash, TB2 is the only real option.
So it is the war tested software and tactical data which comes with the TB2, nothing else.
The drone has proven itself to be honest. I first noticed them in the conflict in Libya. Where the did the impossible. Helping the GNA who almost lost the civil war, gaining more ground on the LNA. We saw the first vids circulating on the internet of this drone in action destroying Russian air defense systems. Which was totally insane to see. Then we saw them being used in the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, were these drones also preformed great. Now in Ukraine, the even made a song about the drone. Strange to see how a country like Turkey because of some export ban turned in a drone power house out of the sudden. The impact of these small drones was huge. It played a major role in multiple bigger conflicts. I am pretty curious to see how the TB-3 will preform, which is also capable to land on an aircraft carrier. Which also will be pretty revolutionary.
