Domestic Defence Industry Partners with Turkish Baykar to Develop UCAV

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The domestic defence industry of Republikorp Group is collaborating with the Turkish defence industry, Baykar, to develop an unmanned combat aerial vehicle or Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV).

In a statement in Jakarta on Thursday, it was explained that the cooperation was established after both parties signed an agreement for the development of the Bayraktar KIZILELMA UCAV at the SAHA 2026 event in Istanbul, Turkey.

“Together with Baykar, we are building a sustainable aerospace and unmanned systems ecosystem, from production, maintenance, human resource development to future technology research,” said Founder of Republikorp Group, Norman Joesoef.

Norman explained that the cooperation is a continuation of the joint venture agreement (JVA) that began in 2025 for the local production of Bayraktar TB3 and AKINCI in Indonesia.

Currently, the partnership is being expanded towards building a sustainable aerospace industry ecosystem and developing a new generation UCAV.

Norman explained that the cooperation covers several areas, including technology transfer, human resource development, MRO facilities, local production and integration centres, expert certification, and future strategic technology research.

He assured that the cooperation will make Indonesia’s air defence stronger starting from 2028.

The cooperation, Norman continued, will also emphasise that the positions of Indonesia and Turkey as strategic partners in the defence industry oriented towards technology transfer, national capacity building, and future defence industry innovation.