Turkey's Baykar Kızılelma Achieves World-First Autonomous Jet Drone Formation Flight

Historic Achievement in Unmanned Aviation

In a groundbreaking development for global aviation, Turkish defense company Baykar announced on December 28, 2025, that its Bayraktar Kızılelma unmanned combat aircraft successfully completed the world's first fully autonomous close-formation flight by jet-powered drones. The historic test, conducted at the Akıncı Flight Training and Test Center in Çorlu, Tekirdağ, northwestern Türkiye, involved two Kızılelma prototypes operating without any human intervention.

This achievement marks a significant milestone, as autonomous close-formation flight has traditionally been a complex task performed exclusively by manned fighter jets. Baykar highlighted that this capability was made possible through advanced smart fleet autonomy algorithms developed by its engineering team.

Details of the Autonomous Flight

During the test, the third prototype (PT3) and the fifth prototype (PT5) of the Bayraktar Kızılelma took off consecutively. Once airborne, the two unmanned combat aircraft executed synchronized maneuvers and maintained a close formation entirely autonomously. The operation demonstrated the Kızılelma's ability to:

• Autonomously adjust relative positions within a formation.
• Perform coordinated missions under the command of a leader.
• Execute a Combat Air Patrol (CAP) mission along a predefined route, a fundamental element of modern air combat.

Baykar stated that the data gathered during the flight will be used to refine the platform's ability to conduct joint operations with multiple unmanned assets.

The Bayraktar Kızılelma Platform

The Bayraktar Kızılelma is a single-engine, stealth, carrier-capable, jet-powered unmanned multirole fighter developed entirely with Baykar's own resources. It is designed for a variety of roles, including air-to-air combat, deep strike missions, and suppression of enemy air defenses. Key specifications include a maximum takeoff weight of up to 8,500 kg and a payload capacity of 1,500 kg. The aircraft has an operational altitude of up to 35,000 feet (10,670 m).

The Kızılelma made its maiden flight on December 14, 2022, and is targeted to enter service in 2026. This latest achievement follows another significant milestone on November 29, 2025, when the Kızılelma became the first unmanned combat aircraft to destroy a jet-powered aerial target using a beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile.

Implications for Future Air Warfare

This successful demonstration of autonomous formation flight by jet-powered drones signals a major shift toward AI-driven air combat and strengthens Turkey's position as a leading developer of next-generation unmanned aviation. The capability opens the door to scalable, AI-driven air combat architectures where formations of unmanned fighters can operate with minimal human oversight, execute synchronized attacks, or serve as force multipliers alongside manned aircraft. As advanced air defense systems become more lethal and contested airspace more complex, this level of autonomy provides a pathway to increased survivability, operational flexibility, and reduced pilot risk.