Hasan Kalyoncu University (HKU) achieved an important success at TEKNOFEST 2025, the world’s largest Aviation, Space and Technology Festival. The university’s Viento UAV Team won first place in the International Fixed-Wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Category and the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAŞ) Special Award.
The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Competitions, organised by TÜBİTAK and the T3 Foundation, were held in Kocaeli. Among the 131 teams that reached the final, the Viento UAV Team, made up of students from HKU’s Electrical and Electronics Engineering department, stood out with its outstanding performance in autonomous flight capabilities, high-resolution imaging systems and payload drop missions.
Acting Rector Küçükerdoğan: “This Success Is No Coincidence”
Congratulating the students, HKU Acting Rector Prof. Dr. Gül Rengin Küçükerdoğan made the following remarks: “As Hasan Kalyoncu University, we are proud of this great success our students achieved at TEKNOFEST. Winning both first place and the TUSAŞ Special Award in the International UAV Fixed-Wing Category is a concrete indication of our university’s vision focused on entrepreneurship, innovation and technology. The double award our Viento UAV Team won at TEKNOFEST 2025 is the fruit of our university’s innovation ecosystem. This success is definitely no coincidence. In previous years, Hasan Kalyoncu University ranked first among foundation universities in TEKNOFEST applications, and our teams have won championships in different categories. This consistent line of success is the most concrete indication of HKU’s vision of technology development and entrepreneurship. With this year’s success, Hasan Kalyoncu University has consolidated its strong position at TEKNOFEST and taken Gaziantep’s and Türkiye’s claim in the aviation and defence industry even further. On this occasion, I thank all our students, academics and everyone who supported us.”
Full Support from Kalyon Garage, KALİTTO and OSB Technopark
Drawing attention to the infrastructure the university provides to students, Prof. Dr. Küçükerdoğan said: “To enable our students to bring their innovative projects to life, we provide every kind of support through the Kalyon Garage Prototyping and Entrepreneurship Centre, the Kalyoncu Innovation and Technology Transfer Office (KALİTTO) and OSB Technopark. At the Kalyon Garage Prototyping and Entrepreneurship Centre, our students have access to many facilities, from 3D printers to simulation laboratories, to develop their projects. While our expert team provides technical mentoring, KALİTTO guides students in patent consultancy, project reports and commercialisation processes. Our OSB Technopark offers great opportunities to students and entrepreneurs thanks to its infrastructure, which strengthens industry-university cooperation, with R&D offices, incubation centres and incentivised software companies. Thanks to these centres, Hasan Kalyoncu University has become not just an educational institution but also an innovation hub.”
Led by Team Captain Muhammed Değer and advised by Asst. Prof. Dr. Fatih Alisinanoğlu of HKU Electrical and Electronics Engineering, the Viento UAV Team members Nazlıcan Özdemir, Muhammed Semih Külekçioğlu, Muhammet Akın Aslan, Ali Kendir, Ahmet Emre Güceylioğlu and Ulaş Yılmaz received their awards from Kocaeli Governor İlhami Aktaş, TÜBİTAK President Prof. Dr. Orhan Aydın and Chairman of the Board of the Türkiye Technology Team Foundation (T3) Elvan Kuzucu.
