Turkish authorities are registering suspicious activity by Russian drones on their territory.
Officials in Turkey have been investigating the origin of another drone that crashed in the western province of Balıkesir. The incident occurred on December 10 but only came to light now following reports in Turkish media.
As Hürriyet reports, farmers found the drone on a vacant lot in the rural district of Manyas.
They detected a strange signal in a wheat field and discovered a UAV with its parachute deployed. They immediately notified law enforcement.
Gendarmerie units, bomb disposal teams and K9 officers arrived at the scene. After an initial inspection, the drone was loaded into a military vehicle and sent to Ankara for detailed analysis.
The village headman told reporters the drone carried no identifying marks - flags or inscriptions - prompting questions from authorities.
Turkish specialists later identified the device as a Merlin‑VR reconnaissance drone, with an estimated value of about $300,000. Such systems are in service with Russia’s military.
It’s the third such incident in recent weeks. On December 19, media reported the discovery of a crashed Russian Orlan‑10 drone on Turkish territory.
