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Warfare


With extensive cost reductions and advancements in the UAVs technology, the defense forces around the globe are increasingly using these for various applications such as surveillance, logistics, communication, attack and combat.

As of 2020, seventeen countries have armed UAVs, and more than 100 countries use UAVs in a military capacity. The global military UAV market is dominated by companies based in the United States, Turkey, China, and Israel. By sale numbers, the US held over 60% military-market share in 2017. Top military UAV manufactures are including General Atomics, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Boeing, Baykar, TAI, CASC and CAIG. China has established and expanded its presence in military UAV market since 2010. Turkey also established and expanded its presence in military UAV market. Of the 18 countries that are known to have received military drones between 2010 to 2019, the top 12 all purchased their drones from China. Israeli companies mainly focus on small surveillance UAV systems and by quantity of drones, Israel exported 60.7% (2014) of UAV on the market while the United States export 23.9% (2014); top importers of military UAVs are the United Kingdom (33.9%) and India (13.2%). The US alone operated over 9,000 military UAVs in 2014. General Atomics is the dominant manufacturer with the Global Hawk and Predator/Mariner systems product-line.

For intelligence and reconnaissance missions, the inherent stealth of micro UAV flapping-wing ornithopters, imitating birds or insects, offers potential for covert surveillance and makes them difficult targets to bring down.

UAVs are used for reconnaissance, attack, demining, and target practice.

Ukraine and 2022 Russian invasion
As a part of its military modernization program the Armed Forces of Ukraine purchased 12 Bayraktar TB2s in 2019. After successful testing of the aircraft, the Ukrainian Navy made a separate order for 6 Bayraktar TB2s, set to be delivered in 2021, according to navy officials. Meanwhile, Turkish and Ukrainian officials announced the establishment of a joint venture to produce 48 additional Bayraktar TB2s in Ukraine. The first batch of the Bayraktar TB2 complex was delivered to the Navy in July 2021.

During a Russian military buildup in Crimea and near Ukraine's borders, a Bayraktar TB2 conducted a reconnaissance flight over the Donbas region on 9 April 2021. This was the first operationalization of the aircraft by Ukrainian Forces within an active conflict zone. In October 2021, a Bayraktar TB2 drone was used for the first time in combat during the war, targeting a Russian separatist artillery position, destroying a D-30 howitzer, and halting the bombardment of Ukrainian troops near Hranitne.

During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Bayraktar TB2 drones have been used by Ukraine’s armed forces against Russian forces and equipment. In January prior to the invasion, the spokesperson for the air force command Lt. Col. Yuri Ignat confirmed that "Ukraine has approximately 20 Bayraktar drones, but we will not stop there".

On 24 February, the day of invasion, the People's Militia of the Luhansk People’s Republic claimed it shot down two TB2 drones near the city of Luhansk. On 27 February, Ukraine’s air force confirmed two strikes by TB2 on Russian convoys in the Kherson and Zhytomyr regions. According to video footages of different occasions released by the armed forces, TB2 drones successfully destroyed Russian command posts, towed artilleries such as 2A65 "Msta-B", military vehicles including a tank; armored vehicles including BMD-2; different types of trucks, surface-to-air missile systems including Buk, Pantsir, Tor; electronic warfare system and multiple rocket launcher (MLRS) such as BM-27 Uragan. The drone also reportedly destroyed two Russian fuel trains. The chief of Ukraine’s air force Lt. Gen. Mykola Oleshchuk called the UAV system "life-giving". On 2 March, Ukrainian defense minister Oleksii Reznikov announced the arrival of additional TB2 drones.

The popularity of the drone in Ukraine led to a song, Bayraktar being written about the drone while throwing insults at the Russian army and the invasion.