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US unmanned aerial systems provider Aerovironment unveiled the latest version of its Switchblade 300 loitering munition on 28 March 2023.

Designated the Switchblade 300 Block 20, the new munition builds on its predecessor Block 10C’s “battle-proven performance with new operational features and significant performance and capability improvements”, the company stated in a press release. An Aerovironment spokesperson confirmed to ESD on 4 April that the Ukrainian military’s use of Switchblade systems donated by the United States for use against invading Russian forces has informed the development of the Switchblade 300 Block 20. The United States announced with a month of Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine that it would be sending an initial 100 Switchblade 300 systems to Kiev and has sent several hundred more Switchblade 300 and larger Switchblade 600 systems to Ukraine since then.

“Since pioneering the loitering missile category with Switchblade 300 more than a decade ago, our tactical missile systems have proven to be a game-changing capability for both US and allied forces, providing a remarkably rapid, precise and effective way to address lethal threats,” Brett Hush, AeroVironment’s vice president and product line general manager of tactical missile systems, was quoted as saying in a company press release. “Switchblade 300 Block 20 will continue to build on the system’s battle-proven legacy.”

Weighing just under 2.26 kg, the Switchblade 300 Block 20 is a backpackable, electrically powered loitering munition that can be deployed in less than two minutes and tube-launched by an individual operator or from land, sea, or mobile platforms. The Block 20 features a longer endurance than the Block 10C (the system’s endurance is now 20+ minutes); an improved, encrypted digital datalink (DDL) range; and a new electro-optic/infra-red panning camera suite. As with the original Switchblade 300s, the Block 20 version maintains the system’s patented wave-off capability; it uses a left-hand commit with continuous positive identification (PID) system, enabling the operator to abort an attack or recommit against moving targets in highly dynamic environments. The system’s touchscreen fire control system also offers multiple commit angles for the munition’s terminal phase as well as user-selectable point of detonation.

The Aerovironment spokesperson told ESD that, with Switchblade Block 10C production now complete, any future Switchblade orders will be for Block 20 units, which the company expects to field by the first quarter of 2024.

Switchblade 300 systems were first ordered by the US military in 2011 for use in Afghanistan, where their ‘wave off’ capability was used to more accurately target insurgents and minimise collateral damage.

Peter Felstead