Ukraine deploys Turkish Korkut air defense systems, a cousin of the Gepard, against Russian drones
Ukraine has purchased a handful of Turkish-made Korkut air defense systems from manufacturer Aselsan and is considering buying more. A Ukrainian official describes their performance against Russian attacks so far as largely successful, though one type of Russian drone may fly too fast for the system to intercept.
Ukraine's armed forces have begun fielding the Korkut air defense system, a Turkish-made weapon produced by defense manufacturer Aselsan. The system is described as a Turkish counterpart to the German Gepard, which has long served as one of Ukraine's key tools against Russian aerial attacks.
Purchase and deployment
The development was reported by Middle East Eye, citing its own sources. According to that reporting, Ukraine has so far acquired only a small number of Korkut units, but is weighing further purchases to expand the number of air defense systems available to its forces.
Ukrainian assessment
An unnamed Ukrainian official quoted in the source report characterized the system's performance in combat as "pretty much successful" against Russian attacks carried out to date. This suggests the Korkut units are proving to be a useful addition to Ukraine's broader air defense arsenal, which draws on equipment from multiple countries.
Possible limitations
At the same time, there are indications that at least one type of Russian drone may fly too fast for the Korkut system to reliably intercept. Such a limitation would not be unusual for air defense guns, whose effectiveness often depends on a target's speed and altitude, which is why militaries typically rely on a mix of different systems rather than a single solution.
The source report does not specify how many Korkut units have been delivered, a timeline for further deliveries, or which exact drone type poses the speed challenge.
