Profile
- Type
- Loitering munition
- Conflict side
- Ukraine
- Origin
- United States
- Service note
- Modern expendable drone
Aircraft & UAVs
Switchblade
A family of portable loitering munitions supplied by the United States. These systems combine reconnaissance and one-way attack roles for small units.
- Conflict side
- Ukraine
- Built by
- AeroVironment
- Built in
- United States
Service History
- Used by
- Ukrainian Armed Forces
Production History
- Built by
- AeroVironment
- Built in
- United States
Specifications
- Crew
- 1 operator
- Weight
- Switchblade 300 Block 20 munition 1.68 kg; Switchblade 600 munition 15 kg
- Performance
- 300 Block 20: 30 km range, 20+ min endurance; 600: 40+ min endurance and longer reach
- Speed
- 300: 101 km/h loiter, 161 km/h sprint; 600: 113 km/h loiter, 185 km/h sprint
- Warhead
- 300 uses modular anti-personnel/light-vehicle payloads; 600 uses anti-armor warhead
Conflict Usage
- Russia-Ukraine War
- Side: Ukraine
Supplied by the United States to Ukraine as portable loitering munitions for reconnaissance and one-way attack roles.
Switchblade Images
Related Weapon Systems
FIM-92 StingerMan-portable air-defense systemA shoulder-fired missile used by infantry to threaten low-flying aircraft and helicopters. Stingers are part of the portable air defense layer that complicates Russian air operations.
NLAWShort-range anti-tank weaponA shoulder-fired anti-tank weapon supplied in large numbers before and after the 2022 full-scale invasion. Its simple employment made it valuable for infantry ambushes.
F-16 Fighting FalconMultirole fighter aircraftThe F-16 Fighting Falcon is a U.S.-designed multirole fighter used for air defense, air-to-air combat, and precision strike missions. Ukraine's receipt of the aircraft marked its move toward Western combat aviation during the Russia-Ukraine War, with official Ukrainian reporting confirming that pilots had begun using F-16s by August 2024.
Shahed-136One-way attack droneThe Shahed-136 is an Iranian-designed one-way attack drone associated with mass long-range strikes, appearing as the Russian Geran family in Ukraine and as an Iranian attack-drone threat in the U.S.-Iran conflict.
ZALA LancetLoitering munitionThe ZALA Lancet is a Russian electric loitering munition with a distinctive dual X-wing layout, launched from a catapult and guided by an onboard television channel for terminal attack. In the Russia-Ukraine War it became one of Russia's prominent tactical strike UAVs, used against Ukrainian artillery, air-defense systems, armor, vehicles, and other battlefield targets.
AGM-88 HARMAir-to-surface anti-radiation missileThe AGM-88 HARM is a U.S. high-speed anti-radiation missile built to home on radar emissions from enemy air-defense systems. In the Russia-Ukraine War, U.S.-supplied HARMs gave Ukrainian aircraft a suppression-of-enemy-air-defenses weapon for forcing or striking Russian radar systems despite the missile's original integration with Western aircraft.Sources
Switchblade 300 Block 20Publisher: AeroVironment | Note: Supports general system specifications and background. | Accessed: 2026-06-19Switchblade 600Publisher: AeroVironment | Note: Supports additional system background. | Accessed: 2026-06-19Fact Sheet on U.S. Security Assistance to UkrainePublisher: U.S. Department of Defense | Note: Supports Russia-Ukraine War military aid context for Switchblade UAS supplied to Ukraine. | Accessed: 2026-06-19