Swiss media hails role of Turkish Akinci drone in locating wreckage of Iranian president’s helicopter

GENEVA

A Turkish Akinci drone’s role in locating the wreckage of a helicopter carrying Iran’s president has been praised by Swiss media, which highlighted the drone's "long flight duration at high altitude."

"The search for Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's crashed helicopter has once again shown the world what capabilities Türkiye now has in the production of drones," the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) daily said in an article.

Noting that the accident site was located thanks to heat sensors on board the Akinci, NZZ underlined that the drone can fly at altitudes of up to 12 kilometers (7.4 miles) and stay in the air for up to 24 hours, even in adverse weather conditions.

The report noted that there was "thick fog and strong storm winds" in the mountainous area of the accident.

Regarding the number of people who viewed a livestream broadcast by Anadolu of the drone, the report said the footage had been viewed almost 8 million times, making the Akinci drone "the most watched aircraft" of the day, according to data from Flightradar24, a website that tracks aircraft movements.

"The development of a domestic arms industry that is as self-sufficient as possible is a central aspect of (Turkish President Recep Tayyip) Erdogan's long-term goal for Türkiye as an independent regional power. Drones, especially from Baykar, play an important role in this. Turkish aircraft are now also in demand on the international market," the article said.

It added that Baykar alone now sells its products in more than 30 countries.

"Just like the military operations in Azerbaijan or Ukraine, the search operation in Iran will also contribute to the Turkish manufacturer's popularity," it underscored.

"The technological advantage over the neighboring country, whose president had an accident in an outdated helicopter without a tracking device and could only be found thanks to Turkish high-tech, is abundantly clear," it said adding "Iran may produce cheap drones for Russia, but Türkiye is a world leader here."

After Raisi's helicopter crashed, Türkiye's National Defense Ministry assigned the Akinci UAV and a Cougar-type helicopter with night vision capabilities to help in search activities.

Raisi was returning from the inauguration ceremony for a dam on the Iran-Azerbaijan border on Sunday when the crash took place, according to Iranian state broadcasters.