The Libyan National Army (LNA) announced on December 13 that its units had shot down a Turkish unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAV) near the country’s capital, Tripoli.
The UCAV was reportedly shot down over the area of Ain Zara, southeast of Tripoli, while it was supporting forces loyal to the Government of National Accord (GNA).
Pro-LNA sources released photos showing the wreckage of the downed UCAV, which was identified as a Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2.
Remains of the drone pic.twitter.com/WD1Ecaksf9
— CNW (@ConflictsW) December 13, 2019
The Bayraktar TB2, which was first introduced in 2014, has an endurance of 24 hours and an operational range of 150 km. Earlier this year, Turkey and possibly Qatar deployed several UCAVs of this type in Tripoli to support GNA forces.
The downed UCAV appeared to be armed with at least two MAM-L small-diameter laser-guided munitions, made by Turkey’s Roketsan.
In the last few months, the LNA claimed on several occasions that it had shot down Turkish UCAVs over western Libya. However, this is the first time a proof was presented.
A day earlier, the LNA’s Commander-in-Chief Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar announced the launch of a “decisive battle” to capture Tripoli from the GNA.
