The US supplied Ukraine with Switchblade 600 kamikaze drones that can carry a warhead similar to an anti-tank missile

On September 20, 2022, it became known that the Pentagon signed a contract with AeroVironment for the supply of Switchblade 600 kamikaze drones to Ukraine in the amount of $2.2 million amid the ongoing confrontation with Russia.

This became known after the US Department of Defense published on its website a document with a list of the types of weapons that the Ukrainian armed forces will soon receive. According to an announcement on the website, the purchase contract was concluded on September 15, 2022.

Pentagon signs contract with AeroVironment to supply Ukraine with Switchblade 600 kamikaze drones

With a range of 600 km, the Switchblade 40 can be airborne for up to 40 minutes and can carry a powerful warhead similar to the Javelin anti-tank missile. This allows the drone to destroy heavily armored vehicles.

Since the beginning of the RussianUkrainian conflict and the subsequent announcement of Russia a special military operation on the territory of Ukraine, the President of Ukraine Zelensky has received military assistance and support in the form of weapons, equipment and ammunition from various states. However, the bulk of the military aid Ukraine received came from. USA Spokesman Pentagon Brigadier General Pat AIR FORCE Ryder at a press briefing said that the total amount of defense assistance provided to Ukraine reached $15.1 billion.

According to the released document, the Pentagon claims that deliveries are carried out as part of US defense assistance to Ukraine under two main programs - Security Assistance Ukraine(USAI) and the Presidential Spending Reduction Administration (PDA).

Under USAI, the U.S. Department of Defense purchases military products directly from industry to provide Ukraine. On the other hand, the PDA allows the Ministry of Defense to supply equipment to Ukraine by borrowing from the reserve reserves of the Ministry of Defense.

In addition to the Switchblade 600, the Pentagon paper lists National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS), 155MM ammunition, Advanced Precision Kill Weapons Systems (APKWS), Switchblade 300, Phoenix Ghost, PUMA UAS, tactical vehicles, optics, and custom ammunition that will be delivered to Ukraine in accordance with USAI and. Contracts were signed with various companies including BAE Systems, Raytheon, AeroVironment and Lockheed. The total amount of expenses indicated in the document is more than $1.5 billion.^[1]

Comparison UAV Lancet 3 и SwithBlade 600

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