AeroVironment has received a $54.9-million contract to produce Switchblade kamikaze drones for the US Army.
The deal is part of a $743-million contract previously awarded to the company for similar loitering munitions.
Alongside the army, the Switchblades will be manufactured for allied nations, including Sweden, Lithuania, and Romania.
Work for the agreement will be ongoing until June 2026 in Simi Valley, California.
“This contract allows us to continue delivering Switchblade systems to the US Army and allied partners at speed with upgraded capabilities based on real-time battlefield feedback,” AeroVironment Loitering Munition Systems SVP and General Manager Brett Hush stated.
“We are honored to provide the US Army and our international partners with battle-proven technology.”
Latest US Defense Projects
AeroVironment’s Switchblade was selected in May 2024 for a US Department of Defense initiative aiming to scale loitering munitions against growing Chinese threats.
A month earlier, the company signed another contract to provide the suicide drones for the US Marine Corps.
In 2023, AeroVironment received a separate award to deliver Switchblades to the US Army and allies.
Switchblade Loitering Munition
The Switchblade aids soldiers to stream live video feeds, collect GPS coordinates, or facilitate aerial attacks on potential targets.
It deploys with a hovering configuration for a timed engagement and can abort or re-engage threats mid-mission.
The backpackable drone is offered in 50 or 130-centimeter (2 or 4-foot) variants depending on user requirements.
The system has a range of up to 40 kilometers (25 miles) and altitude of about 152 meters (500 feet).
Switchblade can deploy autonomously or manually at up to 115 miles (185 kilometers) per hour.