Pakistan Used Turkish Asisguard Songar Drones Against India: Here's All About It

Revealing that Pakistan launched 300 to 400 drones against India on the night of 8 May, India's military officers stated that these drones included a few Turkish Asisguard Songar and the forensics of wreckages are being done.

The Asisguard Songar drones are domestically developed by Turkey. They are armed unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) designed for tactical military and security operations.

Introduced by Asisguard, a Turkish defence technology company, Songar is notable for being Turkey's first national armed drone system, entering service with the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) in early 2020.

Originally equipped with a 5.56×45mm NATO machine gun capable of carrying 200 rounds, Songar has been adapted to accommodate various weapon systems, including a 7.62×39mm infantry rifle, a six-barrel 40mm grenade launcher (RDS40-MGL), and an 81mm mortar system.

The drone incorporates an automatic gun stabiliser (OASIS), recoil damping, and a tiltable barrel (0–60° vertical axis) to maintain firing accuracy during flight.

Songar can operate within a mission radius of up to 10 kilometers and at altitudes up to 2,800 meters. It features autonomous and manual flight control modes, return-to-home functionality on link loss or critical battery level, and in-flight mission changes.

Equipped with a pilot camera offering 10x magnification and a gun camera, Songar provides real-time video transmission and can perform tasks such as target detection, threat neutralization, and post-operation damage assessment.

The system supports simultaneous missions with single or multiple drones, enhancing its effectiveness in complex operational scenarios. It is used for target detection, area surveillance, threat neutralisation, and post-mission damage assessment.

It can also operate in coordinated groups (in swarm mode) for simultaneous targeting. Songar is noted as the world’s first operational armed drone with a stabilized machine gun.

Its use by Pakistan against India shows a deep bond including defence ties between the two Islamic countries. However, India shot down most of these drones and retaliated by targeting four air defence sites in Pakistan, hitting one air defence radar.