Malaysia Set To Receive ANKA MALE-UAS From Turkiye This Year - Turkish Ambassador
By Mohd Haikal Isa
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 21 (Bernama) – The Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) is expected to begin receiving the Turkish-made ANKA Medium Altitude Long Endurance-Unmanned Aerial System (MALE-UAS) sometime this year, said Turkish Ambassador to Malaysia, Emir Salim Yuksel.
Speaking to Bernama after an interview on Bernama TV’s The Nation programme on Thursday, he described the ANKA MALE-UAS, developed by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) and to be operated by the RMAF, as a “highly advanced platform.”
“I think the transfer of ANKA to Malaysia will take place this year, but these are highly advanced platforms - they are not just a single flying object.
“They require connectivity, command and control systems, and personnel training. Since these are highly sophisticated UAS, it will take some time to address the side issues that we have to solve,” he said.
The Malaysian Ministry of Defence and TAI signed the contract for the procurement of three units of the ANKA MALE-UAS, along with associated support equipment, during the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition (LIMA) in May 2023.
On whether Malaysia might place additional orders for ANKA-UAS from TAI in the near future to fulfil the needs of its armed forces, the ambassador did not rule out the possibility but left the decision to the discretion of the Southeast Asian nation.
Nevertheless, he noted that defence relations between Malaysia and Turkiye have been particularly strong and that Ankara is eager to “cooperate (with Kuala Lumpur) as much as possible.
“Of course, discussions on future collaboration are ongoing. I believe there are vast opportunities for cooperation between the two countries, and so, I think there is no hurdle or impediment between two countries to go ahead,” he said.
Malaysia has indicated plans to station its newly acquired ANKA MALE-UAS at Labuan Airbase to serve as its “eyes and ears”, monitoring foreign incursions into its waters, particularly within its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea, where extensive oil and gas activities are located.
Malaysia is believed to have selected the ANKA-S variant, capable of operating at altitudes of up to 30,000 feet for 24 to 30 hours, with a payload capacity ranging from 250 to 350 kilogrammes.
The ANKA-S MALE-UAS variant features a composite airframe integrated with a domestically developed autonomous flight control computer, enabling waypoint navigation and autonomous flight operations.
Equipped with a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), Inverse SAR (ISAR), and a Ground Moving Target Indicator (GMTI) radar, the ANKA-S can detect, identify, and track both stationary and moving targets.
Beyond Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions, the advanced ANKA MALE-UAS could also be armed with four MAM Smart Micro Missiles, developed by ROKETSAN, for precision ground-attack missions.
When asked about the number of Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) personnel currently stationed in Turkiye, the ambassador said a number of MAF personnel are currently based in Turkiye, not only for the ANKA MALE-UAS project but also to oversee the construction of three Littoral Mission Ship Batch II (LMSBII) vessels acquired by the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) from a Turkish shipyard.
Malaysia signed a contract last year to procure three LMSBII, which will be based on the Turkish Navy’s ADA-class corvette design.
The three littoral mission warships will be equipped with advanced electronics and sensors, as well as Turkish-made ATMACA anti-ship missiles, developed by Türkiye’s defence company ROKETSAN, capable of striking targets accurately from a range of 250 kilometres.
-- BERNAMA
