Türkiye is the fastest rising supplier in the military unmanned aerial vehicle market in recent years. According to newly released data by the US-based Center for a New American Security, 65 percent of the 69 armed UAV sales made by Turkey, China and the USA to 40 countries between 2018 and September 2023 originated from Turkey. In the same period, China’s share remained at 26 percent and the USA’s share remained at 8 percent. Bayraktar TB2 was at the center of the rise. The use of Turkish UAVs in the Libya, Nagorno-Karabakh and Russia-Ukraine wars increased international visibility. While all six countries that purchased armed UAVs for the first time in 2022 preferred Bayraktar TB2, Türkiye exceeded China’s annual sales level by making 18 sales in the same year.
PRICE ADVANTAGE
One of Türkiye’s advantages was price and delivery time. In CNAS comparisons, the platform cost of Bayraktar TB2 is shown to be approximately 5 million dollars, while the price for Chinese-made systems is 1-4 million dollars, and for the US-made MQ-9 Reaper, it is approximately 32 million dollars. When ammunition, training, ground control system and logistics packages are added, the total contract prices go up. The strict export restrictions imposed by the USA for many years also changed the balance in the market. It is also emphasized that many countries that cannot access systems such as MQ-9 Reaper turned first to China and then to Türkiye.
REACHED 10 BILLION DOLLARS
Türkiye’s export portfolio no longer consists only of Bayraktar TB2. AKINCI TİHA and TAI’s ANKA family are also present in foreign markets. According to the data announced by Baykar as of September 2026, the company signed export agreements with 39 countries. The number of countries with which agreements were made for Bayraktar TB2 reached 36 and for AKINCI reached 16. The growth in exports was also reflected in monetary data. Baykar achieved exports of 2.2 billion dollars in 2025. Türkiye’s total defense and aerospace exports increased to 10 billion 54 million dollars in the same year. This figure was only $248 million in 2002. The market area of Turkish UCAVs has also expanded. While Qatar, Azerbaijan, Ukraine, North Africa and Central Asia stood out in the first period, European countries also became among the buyers in the following years. With Poland’s purchase of Bayraktar TB2, Türkiye exported UAVs of this class to a NATO and European Union member for the first time.
