Baykar demonstrates autonomous swarm with K2 strike drone

Turkey’s Baykar Technologies has demonstrated a mixed swarm of autonomous and remotely operated drones. Using its recently release K2 kamikaze drone and a new 1,000 km loitering munition called Sivrisinek, the company has presented a new CONEMP for autonomous strike.

By Sam Cranny-Evans, editor of Calibre Defence, published on April 30, 2026.

Baykar Technologies put a fleet of remotely operated and autonomous strike drones into a combined demonstration on April 17. According to an April 24 press release, the tests showed autonomous navigation, swarm behaviour, and target detection.

The demonstration was held at the Keşan Flight Training and Test Center, which is the facility owned and operated by Baykar. It involved five of the K2 strike drones taking off within five minutes and flying in different formations to conduct patrols. Ten of the company’s new Sivrisinek loitering munition then joined the flight, swarming beneath the K2s.

The whole swarm was observed by Bayraktar TB2s, TB3s, and Akincis flying at a higher altitude. The formation coordinated using AI and engaged a target as a swarm demonstrating its ability to intelligently engage a target.

Baykar Technologies is not the first Turkish company to demonstrate an autonomous swarm strike. STM conducted an exercise with 20 of its Kargu loitering munitions back in January. While more tactical than the K2 strike drone in nature, it does reflect a growing industrial effort to build functional autonomous weapons. However, the question really is whether or not there is a desire for this technology within the Turkish forces.

Tech profile: Sivrisinek loitering munition

Ten Sivrisinek loitering munitions arranged on the runway at Baykar Technology’s Keşan Flight Training and Test Center. Credit: Baykar Technologies.

Sivrisinek is the Turkish word for mosquito (pronounced siv-ri-si-NEK). It is a new addition to Baykar’s fleet of strike drones and has a claimed range of 1,000 km. For reference, this is approximately ten times the range of other loitering munitions on the market. The size of the Sivrisinek has not been released by Baykar, but from the available imagery it is closer to a small aircraft than the kind of X-wing drones used in Ukraine. The fixed wing design should also support the longer reach, which it will certainly need as a runway is likely essential.

According to Baykar, the Sivrisinek can share target data within a flight formation. And it uses AI-based visual positioning for navigation, which makes it resistant to GPS jamming the company states. This may be true, but visual positioning does come with its own challenges. Making it work over open water, for instance, is very difficult. And if it is used over an area that is being heavily contested, the changes to terrain caused by heavy munitions can change the terrain significantly. That said, if the drones can reach a target in one piece and maintain their formation, it is reasonable to assume that diving and striking as a swarm would increase the chances of a successful strike.

Calibre comment: The mixed strike drone CONEMP

The Baykar demonstration hints at a specific concept of employment (CONEMP). Combining the K2 strike drone with the Sivrisinek and remotely operated platforms suggests a persistent recce-strike network. The mixed formation would be able to engage a range of targets from personnel and light vehicles, through to heavy armour and emplaced positions, or surface vessels. The TB2 and Akinci drones provide good levels of ISTAR. Their own onboard munitions like the MAM-L have proven effective in past conflicts. But if the remotely operated drones were operating and controlling a larger fleet of autonomous drones, then their persistence could increase significantly.

In a scenario where a force is defending a city, this could see a single orbit of munitions cause extensive damage without ever risking personnel. Of course, a reasonably effective air defence network would make short work of this mixed formation. And that is the threat that a lot of strike drones – which tend to be big and slow – will have to contend with. In sub-peer operations, however, they could prove to be dominant. This could happen by achieving more complete destruction of an adversary formation.

The lead image shows K2 kamikaze strike drones flying in formation. Credit: Baykar Technologies.