Over the past year, and two
US-
Israeli conflicts with Iran,
Turkey has focused on how to use "kamikaze" suicide drones in warfare after seeing how effective Tehran's have been.
Turkish officials have been taking notes amid rising tensions between Turkey and Israel. Both countries have emerged since 2024 as rivals vying for regional dominance.
While many Turkish arms companies, including Skydagger and Turkish Aerospace Industries, are developing drones similar to the Shahed, a prominent Turkish company called Baykar was the first to cross the finish line with three separate "kamikaze" drones.
The drones - K2, Sivrisinek and Mizrak - differ in specifications, range and capabilities.
While each has features that could compete with the Shahed, the real innovation lies in how they could work together against enemies in a layered attack strategy.
K2, a large drone that can carry munitions weighing 200kg, can fly for 13 hours within a range of 2,000km without using global navigation satellite systems.
It can autonomously estimate its location by visually scanning the terrain and conduct precision strikes thanks to its satellite datalink features. The drone can either destroy itself in the attack or fly back for reuse.
Sivrisinek is
estimated to cost as little as $25,000 to $30,000 and could be used in large numbers since it is highly expendable. The drone is believed to be an updated version of the YIHA-3, which has been heavily used by many countries including Pakistan since 2023.
Sivrisinek benefits from extensive battle experience and valuable real-world technical data thanks to its predecessor's use in the conflicts in Syria, Ukraine and Sudan, as well as the 2025 clashes between Pakistan and India.
The latest product, Mizrak, which was revealed on Thursday, has similarities with the Shahed-136.
While the Shahed-136 boasts a 2,000km range and a 50kg warhead after years of development, Mizrak has suddenly emerged with a 1,000km range and a 40kg payload.
All three "kamikaze" unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are resistant to electronic warfare, can visually pinpoint targets without GNSS, and conduct attacks using their own autonomous capabilities and satellite links.
"The Iranian UAV programme lacks proven capabilities in AI-based autonomous and network-centric swarm attack skills," said Hursit Dingil, an expert on Iran's military capabilities at the Ankara-based Centre for Area Studies.
"In other words, it can be argued that the Shahed-136 cannot enter this new hybrid class developed by Turkey, given its proven autonomous capabilities and inherent drone power advantages," he said.