Türkiye’s recent advancements in unmanned combat aviation have once again drawn global attention, particularly after KIZILELMA successfully completed a groundbreaking air-to-air missile test. During this test, KIZILELMA identified its target using its onboard AESA radar and destroyed it with a domestically developed missile—an achievement documented with clear video footage. This milestone positioned KIZILELMA as the world’s first unmanned fighter aircraft to autonomously detect and neutralize an aerial target.

Only days after this major success, Boeing announced that its MQ-28 Ghost Bat unmanned combat aircraft had conducted a similar test using the AIM-120 AMRAAM missile. Boeing promoted the event as a significant first, but social media users quickly pointed out that Türkiye had already accomplished this milestone earlier, and with complete sensor autonomy.

A key difference in the U.S. test is that MQ-28 did not detect the target on its own. Instead, the aircraft relied on targeting data relayed from an accompanying airborne early warning aircraft. This meant that the MQ-28 performed only the missile launch portion of the engagement. Additionally, unlike Türkiye’s fully documented test, the U.S. shared no footage of the missile impact, leaving the claim of a successful hit unverified in the public domain.

KIZILELMA, on the other hand, demonstrated capabilities that many countries—including the U.S.—still envision primarily within manned-unmanned teaming concepts. Equipped with advanced sensors, radar technology, and Turkish-made munitions, KIZILELMA can independently execute air-to-air missions without support from manned aircraft. These features elevate the platform far above many of its competitors and signal a transformative moment in Türkiye’s defense aviation strategy.