The Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) has unveiled a locally developed version of the Kamikaze unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), a loitering munition designed for precision strikes on high-value targets during combat.
Nicknamed the "suicide drone" and capable of carrying out self-destructive attacks with high-explosive warheads, it is part of a broader push to enhance the country's defence capabilities through home-grown innovation, said the RTAF on Saturday.
The project is a collaboration between the Navaminda Kasatriyadhiraj Royal Air Force Academy, the Directorate of Armament of the RTAF and the RTAF's Research and Development Centre for Space and Aeronautical Science and Technology.
The drone has completed testing, demonstrating the ability to strike medium-range targets with a deviation of less than five metres from the intended point of impact.
The RTAF hailed the trial as a step toward bringing the Kamikaze UAV into full-scale production and eventual deployment, saying the new system is expected to bolster its combat readiness and help safeguard national sovereignty through modernised and self-reliant military technology.