In addition to striking tank columns and SAM sites during the Nagorno-Karabakh War, Bayraktar TB2s also managed to find, track and destroy the R-17 Scud-B ballistic missile launchers and BM-30 ‘Smerch’ multiple rocket launchers that had been responsible for the attacks against the Azerbaijani cities of Ganja and Barda in October, resulting in the deaths of 26 and 27 civilians respectively. The fact that a relatively light and inexpensive drone could not only evade but actively search out and destroy such systems while suffering little losses in return marks a new way of conducting warfare that, now that it has been tried and tested in at least three separate conflicts, cannot be reverted. The TB2’s performance in the face of these systems, designed to completely deny the airforces of even the most advanced nations the ability to function in enemy airspace, must have been a shock not only to their operators, but also to the Russian companies that built them. However, past engagements over Syria, Libya as well as the one in Nagorno-Karabakh demonstrated an ability to take on many of the integrated air defence systems (IADS) modern nations might muster, having successfully combatted systems such as the S-300PS, Buk-M2, Tor-M2 and Pantsir-S1 even when used in conjunction with electronic warfare (EW) systems like the Avtobaza-M, Repellent-1, Borisoglebsk-2 and Groza-S. In the months since hostilities between the two countries ceased some observers have attempted to explain away the TB2’s extraordinary effectivity by defects of the Armenian military, whose equipment had supposedly been lacking. While a combination of factors was ultimately responsible for the Azerbijani military’s overwhelming success, there is no denying the centerpiece of its campaign was this one piece of newly acquired technology.

In the course of this short but intense conflict, a handful of Azerbaijani Bayraktar TB2 UCAVs essentially broke the back of the Armenian military, destroying a confirmed total of 549 ground targets including 126 armoured fighting vehicles (including 92 T-72 tanks), 147 artillery pieces, 60 multiple rocket launchers, 22 surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems, six radar systems and 186 vehicles. The result of this Caucasian engagement was a stunning upset of the status quo, marking a watershed moment in the history of warfare that has rightfully garnered the attention of analysts and history buffs worldwide. A year has passed since the vicious conflict now known as the Forty-Four Day War was brought to its conclusion.

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