“AV’s Switchblade 300 Chosen as Game-Changer for USMC’s Precision Fire Initiative”

AeroVironment (AV) has been chosen by the U.S. Marine Corps for the initial phase of the Organic Precision Fires-Light (OPF-L) project of record. AV’s Switchblade 300 Block 20 loitering munition system (LMS) will deliver the Marine Corps with an organic, anti-armor/anti-personnel, precision strike capability at the tactical level. AV received an initial order of $8.9M under a contract with a maximum potential worth of $249M.

AV’s Switchblade 300 Block 20 fulfills the OPF-L program’s need for a single-user, man-portable loitering munition featuring a lightweight, precision-guided ability against beyond-line-of-sight opponents. Switchblade 300 will guarantee that Marines are adequately equipped and sustained with an effective, reliable organic capability for swift target engagement while reducing collateral damage and vulnerability to hostile weapon systems.

“AV provides a combat-tested and production-ready solution to support OPF-L in fulfilling the Marine Corps’ demands,” stated AV’s Senior Vice President of LMS, Brett Hush. “Our established and dependable manufacturing expertise, along with exceptional training and support, will ensure Marine Infantry is thoroughly prepared for the engagement.”

AV’s Switchblade 300 has been utilized to address urgent operational needs in combat zones since 2012. The Switchblade 300 Block 20 represents the next evolution of the system, building on over ten years of user evaluations, combat deployments, and insights gained from the conflict in Ukraine, including operations in contested environments.

The Switchblade Block 20 system greatly enhances the existing capabilities of the Switchblade 300, including armor-penetrating abilities through an Explosively Formed Penetrator (EFP) warhead, improved target engagement angles, and significantly enhanced battery duration, flight endurance, and radio link range.

“With more than 6,000 Switchblade loitering missiles evaluated, produced, and deployed, AV occupies a distinctive position to provide groundbreaking organic precision strike capabilities to the USMC, leveraging the proven dependability, manufacturability, and supportability of current Switchblade initiatives,” added Hush.