The KEMANKEŞ Mini Cruise Missile was announced for the first time by BAYKAR Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Technology Officer Selçuk BAYRAKTAR during the delivery ceremony of the TCG Anadolu Multi-Purpose Amphibious Assault Ship to the Turkish Naval Forces Command held at SEDEF Shipyard on April 10, 2023, and it was officially introduced during TEKNOFEST 2023, the Aviation, Space, and Technology Festival held at İstanbul Atatürk Airport between April 27 and May 1, 2023. During TEKNOFEST on April 28, the BAYKAR representative I spoke of mentioned that flight tests had begun with the KEMANKEŞ and were ongoing.

In the short video shared by BAYKAR Technology, the IL170 Engine (170N/17.3kgf) started while the KEMANKEŞ was still on the external pylon. This method is preferred due to certain limits on the operating speed of the engine because munitions are launched from UAVs at lower speeds compared to fighter aircraft. After the engine starts, the munition is released once the system software gives approval. The same concept will also be used in the firing test of the KUZGUN-TJ Modular Munition from the UAV. KUZGUN-TJ is the Turbojet Engine variant of the KUZGUN Guided Modular Munition Family, nationally developed by TÜBİTAK SAGE. Accordingly, the engine will be started and brought to idle before the KUZGUN-TJ is released from the UAV. This method eliminates concerns about whether the engine successfully starts after the launch and prevents the munition from going to the wrong target.