9 July 2024

ADF to acquire small Switchblade loitering drones

| Andrew McLaughlin
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Switchblade 300 loitering munition

The Switchblade 300 weighs 3 kg and has an endurance of up to 15 minutes. Photo: AeroVironment.

The Australian Defence Force will acquire an unspecified number of small portable Switchblade anti-personnel and anti-armour loitering munitions.

Built by US company AeroVironment, the Switchblade 300 weighs less than 3 kg and is launched vertically from an air-compressed tube that a soldier can carry.

After launch, the drone’s composite folding wings and tails quickly deploy and a small pusher propellor driven by an electric motor is activated, giving it a range of up to 10 km or an endurance of up to 15 minutes. The drone carries an optical sensor that can be viewed in real-time on a small hand-held ground control station (GCS).

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Once a target has been identified, the operator directs the drone onto the target where a small, shaped warhead detonates. Typical targets include armoured vehicles, small boats, buildings, communications antennas, artillery placements, fixed personnel positions or air defence systems.

The Switchblade entered service with the US military in 2012 and has been used to great effect by Ukraine against Russian forces since 2022. More recently, Taiwan was approved by the US State Department to buy more than 700 Switchblades and various training and support services at an estimated cost of US$60 million (A$89 million).

The announcement comes just weeks after reports that the ADF will also acquire the larger and longer-range Australian-designed Innovaero OWL loitering munition.

Switchblade 300 loitering munition

The Switchblade is launched from a portable air-compressed tube, after which its wings and propellor deploy. Photo: AeroVironment.

Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy said February’s Defence Strategic Review (DSR) highlighted the increasing prevalence of autonomous weapon systems and that new technology and asymmetric advantage are important priorities.

“That’s why the Government is taking action to enhance the ADF’s use of drones,” he said.

“The delivery of this proven precision loitering munition demonstrates the speed at which we are introducing capabilities to the ADF. It shows the Australian Government is getting on with the job of providing the ADF with state-of-the-art technologies it needs to meet the threats we face.”

Defence expects the first Switchblade 300s will be delivered to Australia later this year and enter service in 2025.

Original Article published by Andrew McLaughlin on PS News.

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Capital Retro8:18 pm 10 Jul 24

This AIM Fracti device was reported on in RiotAct earlier this year by Andrew McLaughlin but there has been no follow-up nor has there been much in the mainstream media.

Note the test result has been reported by Dept Defence: https://www.defence.gov.au/news-events/news/2024-06-17/defences-first-directed-energy-weapon-put-test

This system should be tested on the Switchblade before we purchase it. It would be ironic that the best attack drone system in the world could be knocked out by an Australian developed system.

Heywood Smith11:36 am 10 Jul 24

Under what circumstances would the ADF use these? with a range of up to 10 km or an endurance of up to 15 minutes, i assume they would come in handy if we are invaded by land?

They seem to be a very good, cheap anti armour thing. Also anti-personnel in entrenched positions.

Costs nearly a quarter of a million bucks to destroy a tank with a Javelin missile. Costs a few hundred bucks to crash a drone into one for the same outcome.

Heywood Smith1:09 pm 10 Jul 24

Yeah i guess this was my point, in terms of Also anti-personnel in entrenched positions. Very low likelihood, so i cant see what advantage they provide the ADF. The SB300 has the capacity to take out fuel trucks, personnel carriers, machine gun nests, trench positions, and dismounted infantry.. Not tanks..

Unfortunately its the Switchblade 600 that has the ability to take out a tank, at a much higher cost.

Equipped with advanced optics and over 40 minutes of flight time, the Switchblade 600 covers a range of 40 km, making it ideal for tracking and engaging hardened targets. Its anti-armor warhead enables long-distance strikes capable of neutralizing heavy armored vehicles, including tanks.

Yeah there is a fair amount more money invested than when strapping an RPG7 to a cheap drone and crashing it into something. The cheap ones seem to be very effective as well.

It has been a huge eye opener to see how effective cheap drones have been in the Russia/Ukraine conflict. Watching a few hundred dollars worth of drone with an RPG strapped to it take out a multi million dollar piece of equipment shows a huge cost/benefit on drones that’s off the scale. Would be crazy not to pay attention and invest in the things.

Tom Worthington8:57 am 10 Jul 24

The ADF needs drone in a hurry, if it is to be viable. So it makes sense to acquire proven products used by our allies. However, at the same time the Australian Government should be setting up a local drone industry. As well as airborne drones, the ADF will need robot tanks, ships & submarines. These are well within the capabilities of Australian industry to design and build (engineering students build them for their assignments at university).

I completely agree. Our culture is very adverse to human losses. This is only going to “get worse”. The use of drones can go a long way to reduce the risk of human losses, though obviously opens us up to a whole heap of other issues such as hacking of drones.

Capital Retro5:05 pm 10 Jul 24

This will change everything: https://www.livescience.com/technology/engineering/ai-drone-that-could-hunt-and-kill-people-built-in-just-hours-by-scientist-for-a-game

Actually, thanks to unbridled media coverage of the current wars we are becoming inured to violence and death. When the world has an unsustainable population everyone will be receptive to being culled which will make it less painful.

Do you think I am paranoid? Well, only the paranoid will survive.

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