Baykar and Leonardo Complete First K-SWARM Crewed-Uncrewed Teaming Trials

Baykar and Leonardo completed the first live phase of their K-SWARM program last month at Baykar’s flight test center in Çorlu, Turkey. An Italian Air Force T-346A trainer served as chase aircraft. During the flights, the Kizilelma completed taxi and takeoff autonomously before joining the M-346 in formation.

The two-person crew in the M-346 then assumed control of the Kizilelma through a newly integrated avionics suite. The drone executed position changes, separations, and rejoins using Baykar’s Smart Fleet Autonomy algorithms while the pilots issued only initial commands.

The Kizilelma project began in 2013 and was publicly revealed in July 2021. Its first flight occurred in December 2022. Baykar and Leonardo first validated the concept through simulated missions using an M-346 full-mission simulator in Italy and Leonardo’s PC2LAB facility in Turin.

The companies plan additional K-SWARM tests in the coming months that will require greater situational awareness and coordinated mission execution.

Public crewed-uncrewed teaming demonstrations have previously been reported in the United States and China. Russia has conducted flight tests pairing an S-70 Okhotnik UCAV with a Su-57 fighter, though details on the level of collaboration remain limited.

Germany has stated a requirement for an operational collaborative combat aircraft before the end of the decade. The Kizilelma is not subject to U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations restrictions that apply to many Western defense systems.