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ASELSAN's Mobile KORKUT 140/35 Air Defense System Successfully Engages Drone in Dynamic Field Test.
On 6 January 2026, ASELSAN released footage showing its KORKUT 140/35 mobile air defense system successfully engaging and destroying an FPV-type drone during dynamic field trials in Türkiye. The test highlights the growing role of gun-based, short-range air defense systems as militaries seek cost-effective answers to low-altitude drone threats.
In a video published by ASELSAN on 6 January 2026, the company shows its KORKUT 140/35 very short-range air defense system engaging and destroying an FPV-type unmanned aerial target during a live-fire trial. The footage underscores the operational pressure many armed forces now face from low-cost drones flying at very low altitude with little warning, in scenarios where expending higher-end interceptors is increasingly difficult to justify on availability and cost grounds. For Türkiye, the event is significant not only for the successful intercept itself, but also as an indicator of the continued maturation of a mobile, gun-based air defense capability intended to move with mechanized formations rather than defend fixed sites.
ASELSAN released footage showing its KORKUT 140/35 mobile air defense system successfully shooting down an FPV-type drone in a live-fire field test, underscoring the growing importance of gun-based counter-drone defenses for maneuvering forces (Picture Source: Aselsan)
The reported test fits into a broader development path for KORKUT. After entering service in a tracked configuration and subsequently being promoted for export, the system has been integrated onto an 8x8 wheeled armored vehicle to expand mobility and improve suitability across different terrain and mission profiles while retaining its close-in protection role for moving units. Previous firing activity associated with the wheeled configuration has also emphasized engagement while on the move, a requirement for any air defense asset expected to shield armored and mechanized columns during maneuver rather than only after halting and deploying in a static posture.
KORKUT 140/35 is centered on a twin 35 mm gun installation intended to deliver high volumes of fire against short-range aerial threats. Published performance figures describe a rate of fire of 1,100 rounds per minute and an effective engagement envelope out to 4 km. In the counter-drone context, that baseline is reinforced by the system’s ability to employ 35 mm airburst ammunition such as ATOM, designed to defeat aerial targets by detonating at a programmed point and generating a controlled fragment pattern across the target’s flight path rather than relying on direct impact. This approach is tailored to the realities of small drones, particularly FPV threats that can be difficult to track consistently at close range, can change course abruptly, and often present only a brief engagement window once detected.
Operationally, KORKUT is presented as a coordinated, multi-vehicle capability rather than a single-platform solution. A typical element is described as three weapon system vehicles supported by a command-and-control vehicle, allowing engagements to be managed as part of a local air picture rather than through isolated sensor and firing decisions. The command vehicle contributes the ability to detect and track targets using a 3D search radar, while each weapon vehicle combines a stabilized gun turret with a tracking suite that includes radar and electro-optical sensors. This sensor mix is central to counter-UAS performance, where small, low-signature targets can be difficult to discriminate against background clutter and where accurate tracking is essential to place airburst effects precisely in the target’s path.
Recent presentations of the system indicate that ASELSAN is also shaping KORKUT’s evolution with a wider counter-UAS toolkit that extends beyond the gun. At IDEF 2025, the company displayed a KORKUT 140/35 configuration associated with additional radar arrangements intended to widen coverage and improve detection and tracking performance, alongside electronic attack equipment positioned for counter-FPV jamming as a complementary soft-kill option. This pairing points to an increasingly layered approach at the platform level, seeking to detect earlier, disrupt when feasible, and retain the gun as the decisive hard-kill layer when an incoming drone survives or bypasses electronic effects.
From a procurement and force-design perspective, the reported FPV engagement is notable because it speaks to relevance as much as raw performance. A mobile, stabilized 35 mm gun system with airburst ammunition, radar and electro-optical tracking, and a command-and-control architecture is aligned with the threat profile posed by FPV drones: low altitude, short warning time, high clutter, and targets that are often too inexpensive to warrant routine missile expenditure. As militaries attempt to preserve interceptor inventories while still protecting armor, artillery, air defense nodes, and forward logistics, systems in the KORKUT class are increasingly positioned as practical, repeatable hard-kill options that can keep pace with maneuver forces and deliver sustained defensive coverage during operations.
Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.