ROME / Anadolu

LBA Systems, the joint venture between Turkish Baykar and Italian Leonardo, unveiled its new drone 'Astore Levante', developed from the Bayraktar TB3 drone, at the Farnborough International Airshow in the UK.

The three companies stated in a joint statement on Tuesday that LBA Systems has reached full operational capability and presented its first product, 'Astore Levante', at the airshow.

The statement explained that the aircraft combines the Bayraktar TB3 platform with advanced technologies provided by Leonardo, including sensor systems, mission systems, and a ground control station.

It added that the industrial activities for the 'Astore Levante' and 'Kızılelma' aircraft will be carried out at Leonardo's facilities, while production of the first batch of 'Astore Levante' has already begun, and it will be delivered to the end user in Italy before the end of this year. Meanwhile, work related to the TB2 and Akıncı platforms will be carried out at Baykar's facilities in Italy.

According to the joint statement, Baykar's General Manager Haluk Bayraktar said that LBA Systems represents a partnership combining Baykar's proven production capability and independent high-tech engineering structure with Leonardo's expertise in aviation systems and advanced payloads.

He added that 'the success of the recent collaborative unmanned-combat (CUC-T) mission tests conducted by Kızılelma with the M-346 aircraft demonstrated the maturity level of our autonomous systems according to NATO standards and their ability to meet the requirements of modern battlefields.'

Bayraktar affirmed that the company will, through LBA Systems, provide reliable and ready solutions for global markets, starting from 'Astore Levante' to 'Kızılelma'.

He explained that this partnership is a strategic step to strengthen the defense industry infrastructure in Europe and allied countries.

For his part, Leonardo's CEO Lorenzo Mariani said that LBA Systems enters the rapidly growing unmanned systems market with a broad range of competitive products.

He noted that the company benefits from Leonardo's advanced payload solutions, which can be integrated with various Baykar platforms to meet modern operational requirements.

Baykar and Leonardo had begun their partnership by signing a memorandum of understanding in Rome in March 2025, before officially signing the joint venture agreement at the Paris Air Show in June of the same year.