Ankara: Italian aerospace company Leonardo and Turkish defense firm Baykar announced at the Farnborough International Airshow that their joint venture, LBA Systems, has become fully operational. The venture reached this milestone after securing the necessary regulatory approvals and appointing its leadership team.
According to Anadolu Agency, LBA Systems is equally owned by Leonardo and Baykar, with each company holding a 50% stake. The joint venture is headquartered in Italy and focuses on the design, development, production, and maintenance of uncrewed aerial systems (UAS). This collaboration leverages Leonardo's expertise in electronics, payload integration, and certification with Baykar's experience in developing and manufacturing drone platforms.
Leonardo has established a dedicated Unmanned Business Unit within its Aeronautics Division to oversee the venture's industrial and business activities. Lorenzo Mariani, CEO and general manager of Leonardo, stated in a joint announcement that LBA Systems enters the rapidly growing uncrewed system sector with a comprehensive and competitive offering. The venture aims to integrate Leonardo's proprietary payloads into Baykar platforms to meet current operational challenges.
Haluk Bayraktar, CEO of Baykar, emphasized the significance of the initiative, which combines Baykar's autonomous architecture and manufacturing capabilities with Leonardo's advanced avionics. He highlighted the success of KIZILELMA's recent CUC-T tests with the M-346 as evidence of their global maturity and adherence to NATO standards. Bayraktar noted that LBA Systems will provide ready and reliable solutions for the global market, strengthening the defense industrial base of Europe and allied nations.
The joint venture's initial portfolio includes six systems, ranging from the lightweight KALKAN, designed for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions, to the TB2 medium-altitude long-endurance drone, the carrier-capable Astore Levante, the AKINCI high-altitude long-endurance platform, and the KIZILELMA uncrewed combat fighter jet. The KIZILELMA recently completed crewed-uncrewed teaming tests with Leonardo's M-346F light fighter aircraft.
At the airshow, Leonardo and Baykar are showcasing the first LBA Systems product, the Astore Levante. Production of this system and the KIZILELMA will occur at Leonardo's facilities, with manufacturing of the first batch of Astore Levante aircraft already in progress. Deliveries to a customer in Italy are expected later this year. Meanwhile, work on the TB2 and AKINCI platforms will be conducted at Baykar's manufacturing plant in Italy.