Özdemir Bayraktar Awards

Özdemir Bayraktar Awards is an annual ceremony held within Baykar Technology. The event is organized to honor the memory of the late Özdemir Bayraktar, founder and honorary president of Baykar Technology, and to recognize Baykar employees who have distinguished themselves through their work and achievements throughout the year.

Özdemir Bayraktar Awards, 1 February 2025

History

The Özdemir Bayraktar Awards were first held on 3 February 2024. The second award ceremony took place on 1 February 2025. These award ceremonies are held at the Baykar Technology Özdemir Bayraktar National Technology Center. It is planned that the event will be held annually on a regular basis.

Award Categories

Awards are presented in various categories during the ceremony. Some of these categories include:

• Team Leader of the Year
• Group Leader of the Year
• Employee of the Year
• Special Awards
• Unit and Group Leaders of the Year

Awards are granted each year based on evaluations conducted according to success criteria defined by Baykar.

First Award Ceremony (3 February 2024)

At the first award ceremony held in 2024, in addition to employees, Özdemir Bayraktar’s widow, Baykar Board of Directors Chairperson Selçuk Bayraktar, and Haluk Bayraktar’s mother Canan Bayraktar were honored for their contributions to the company’s successes. The awards were presented by Selçuk Bayraktar and Haluk Bayraktar.

Speeches at the Award Ceremonies

Haluk Bayraktar’s Speech

In his speech at the ceremony, Haluk Bayraktar congratulated the award recipients and said:

“Today here at the Baykar Özdemir Bayraktar Awards, honoring you brings me great pride pride. Because you are the architects of Baykar’s success, striving with determination and integrity, without yielding in the face of challenges, to achieve excellence. We stood shoulder to shoulder, believed, worked hard, and succeeded. We will continue to serve our nation and humanity.”

Selçuk Bayraktar’s Speech

Selçuk Bayraktar, in his speech at the ceremony, contrasted his own rational definition of humanity with the global understanding and stated:

“Inspired by the values of civilization, justice, mercy and goodness, a rational human being in this billion-year-old universe, whose fleeting journey on earth is to spread goodness and counteract evil in proportion to its strength, leaves behind a noble echo. I believe that all of us, as an institution, must strive in this direction during this temporary journey.”

Special Acknowledgment and Honor

At this award ceremony, Baykar employees who served alongside Mehmetçik as volunteer for two moon were specially honored. While presenting the awards to these employees, Selçuk Bayraktar said:

“As a child of this nation, I extend my heartfelt gratitude to them for their efforts, dedication, spirit, courage, and homeland love. Right be, exist.”

Second Award Ceremony (1 February 2025)

At the second Özdemir Bayraktar Awards ceremony held in 2025, 122 individuals received their awards from Selçuk Bayraktar, Chairman of the Baykar Board of Directors, and Haluk Bayraktar, General Manager.

Among the recipients were employees who successfully completed the 20-week Baykar MBA program and ranked in the top three, as well as unit leaders, group leaders, team leaders, and employees of the year place. In addition to these awards, ten individuals, including Omar Bayraktar who co-founded Baykar with his late brother Özdemir Bayraktar, were awarded the Baykar Special Award.

Özdemir Bayraktar Awards, 1 February 2025

Selçuk Bayraktar’s Speech

In his speech at the second award ceremony, Selçuk Bayraktar, Chairman of the Baykar Board of Directors and Technology Leader, emphasized the company’s achievements in 2024 and shared its goals for 2025 with Baykar employees. Selçuk Bayraktar concluded his speech with these words: “The world, with all its institutions, has been destroyed and must be rebuilt.

You, the children of our civilization with a thousand faces, will build a world enveloped by goodness and compassion, where freedom and prosperity spread across the entire earth. May we all reach those days together, with love and strength.”