About Songar Drones
- Songar drones are armed unmanned aerial systems (UAS) developed by Turkey-based defence company Asisguard and are considered Turkey’s first indigenously developed armed drones.
- First launched in April 2019, these drones were officially inducted into the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) in February 2020 after completing successful trials.
Key Technical Features of Songar Drones
- The drone's rotor-to-rotor width is 140 cm, with a maximum take-off weight of 45 kg.
- It can perform operations for 35 minutes without payload, and has autonomous and manual flight control modes.
- Operational range is approximately 10 km, with a maximum altitude of 3,000 m above mean sea level and 300 m above ground level.
- Equipped with real-time video transmission and dual cameras – a pilot camera for navigation and a gun-mounted camera for targeting.
- Includes GPS and GLONASS-based navigation, with autonomous return-to-base function in case of communication loss.
Weapon Configurations and Variants
- There are five primary weaponised variants of Songar drones:
- Songar 5.56×45 mm Assault Rifle – uses standard NATO rounds with a recoil-dampening mechanism.
- Songar 2×40 mm Grenade Launcher – fires two grenades up to 400–450 metres.
- Songar 6×40 mm Drum-type Grenade Launcher – fires six grenades in rapid succession.
- Songar 3×81 mm Mortar Gripper – suited for launching mortar shells.
- Songar 8×Tear/Smoke Grenade Launcher – delivers grenades via controlled free-fall, ideal for riot control or non-lethal missions.
- All variants are equipped with multi-layered safety protocols, requiring operator authorization before firing.
