attempt to attack the Kursk region, what it is capable of, characteristics: Politics: Russia: Lenta.ru

Armed forces Ukraine (UAF) for the first time used an American unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) Switchblade 600 to attack Russian territory, found out Telegram channel Shot.

The attack attempt was made by Ukraine the day before. Russian military personnel noticed an enemy drone over the Rylsky district of the Kursk region and eliminated it with a shot from a gun.

After examining the wreckage, it turned out that the military encountered a Switchblade 600, a tactical loitering munition developed by the American company AeroVironment. The warhead was a warhead from the American FGM-148 anti-tank missile. Javelin. It is specified that these drones are launched from a transport and launch container similar to a mortar. The UAV operator controls the flight at a range of several tens of kilometers.

Information about Switchblade in the SVO zone appeared at the end of October

“News” wrote about the appearance of a new modification of the American kamikaze drone in the Donetsk direction. The identified UAV debris suggested that it was a Switchblade 600 model. The kamikaze drone carries an armor-piercing warhead weighing 15 kilograms. The device reaches speeds of up to 185 kilometers per hour, the flight duration is 40 minutes.

Previously, only the Switchblade 300 model, a small portable kamikaze drone, was widely used in Ukraine. A special feature of both models is the design with folding wings, so that it can be carried in a compact launch container and quickly prepared for use.

Operator of the Tor-M2 anti-aircraft complex of the Center group, sergeant Alexander Ivanov said that the crew of the vehicle hits various targets, including reconnaissance drones and Switchblade devices.

Military expert calls Switchblade drones harmful

Captain of the first rank of the reserve, military expert Vasily Dandykin in a conversation with Lenta.ru notedthat these are drones with a short range, but “quite serious”, 40 kilometers.

According to the expert, the drone could be stuffed with cluster munitions that scatter submunitions. However, it does not carry much ammunition. UAVs can be used against vehicles, especially lightly armored ones. Depending on the ammunition design, the drone can also be used against infantry in certain fortified areas, Dandykin added.