First flight of Turgis Gaillard's AAROK

AAROK, Turgis Gaillard's Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) drone prototype, successfully completed its first flight from Blois-Le Breuil airfield. This new milestone demonstrates the progress of the program, essential to meeting the needs of the French and allied armed forces.

"Today's flight is a decisive step in the development of AAROK," said Fanny Turgis, President of Turgis Gaillard. "It culminates four years of significant effort to create the first European MALE drone. The entire team worked tirelessly to transform a simple idea into a successful aircraft, because AAROK has already demonstrated great maturity during this first flight."

"The level of maturity demonstrated is the main lesson of this first flight," continued Patrick Gaillard, CEO of Turgis Gaillard. "As during the high-speed taxiing campaign, everything went as we had anticipated. The aircraft displayed sound handling, a straightforward takeoff, and an impressive climb rate; all parameters were in line with expectations. These successes give us a lot of confidence for the next steps."

The AAROK meets the needs of the French and allied armed forces for a large drone capable of performing intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance and strike missions. With its 5.5-ton maximum takeoff weight, 1.5-ton armament, and 1,200 horsepower engine, the AAROK is unparalleled in Europe. It represents a sovereign, economical, and high-performance option to replace American drones in the same category.

During a visit to the Turgis Gaillard company's premises at Blois-Le Breuil airfield on February 27, 2025, Sébastien Lecornu, then Minister of the Armed Forces, highlighted the importance of this project for the French armed forces, faced with the need to gather long-range intelligence, ensure the protection of vast territorial waters, and conduct combat support missions away from anti-aircraft threats. This interest resulted in financial support from the French Armaments Directorate General, announced during the 2025 Paris Air Show, to support continued development.

All Turgis Gaillard employees are now committed to the test program, determined to make the AAROK available to the French armed forces and their allies as quickly as possible.