A military expert told how Switchblade drones will affect the course of the conflict in Ukraine
The United States is discussing the possibility of supplying Ukraine with Switchblade kamikaze drones, NBC reported, citing Congressional sources. "Newspaper.Ru" figured out how effective these drones can be.
Switchblade deliveries will be carried out as part of the next package of military assistance, a source told NBC. Earlier, US President Joe Biden said that the US will allocate an additional $ 800 million in military aid to Ukraine, which will bring its volume to $ 1 billion. According to the channel's sources, the US military used Switchblade in Afghanistan, but did not make this fact public.
Switchblade kamikaze drones were created for the US Marine Corps in 2011. There are two options: Switchblade-300 and Switchblade-600.
"Switchblade is launched into the air in a mortar way - it shoots back like a mine, unfolds its wings in the air, starts the engine and flies at a speed of 160 km per hour to the target area. The flight duration is 40 minutes, the range is 40 km. He has an optoelectronic camera in front of him, which is looking for a target, the operator gives a command, he dives and destroys it," he told the newspaper.Ru" military expert, editor of the magazine "Arsenal of the Fatherland" Alexey Leonkov.
According to Konstantin Sivkov, a corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Rocket and Artillery Sciences, Doctor of Military Sciences, the Switchblade-300 - a small device similar to a child's toy - weighs 2.5 kg, of which 1 kg is a combat unit. "It's like a small grenade from a grenade launcher. Such ammunition does not pose any threat to the tank, for other armored vehicles - too, only for open manpower," explained Sivkov.
- says Sivkov.
The expert noted that these drones can work both offline and controlled by an operator. "In offline mode, the drone is sent to the designated area and falls like a normal rocket. But the Switchblade-300 is small, it does not have a target recognition system, so it may not solve the problem successfully - just fall into an empty place and explode. If the drone is controlled by an operator, then its communication channel is jammed with portable electronic warfare devices," Sivkov said.
With the Switchblade-300, you can even fight with small arms. "The only thing is that this drone creates additional tension for the troops, because in conditions of smoke or clouds it can appear suddenly and suddenly strike," Sivkov stressed. According to the expert, the most unpleasant thing that can be in the use of these drones is not their single use, but a large volley.
"As for the Switchblade-600, since it is larger, it can be destroyed by the fire of automatic anti-aircraft guns. If such ammunition appears in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, the Russian troops will have to increase their air defense capabilities," Sivkov believes.
Most likely, the fight against these barrage munitions will be carried out by destroying warehouses with these devices at the moment when they are unloaded on them on the territory of Ukraine. "This is the most reliable way," says Sivkov.
According to Leonkov, it is impossible to call Switchblade kamikaze drones effective for "mass use."
Leonkov declared.
According to his forecast, Switchblade is waiting for the same fate in Ukraine as Bayraktar TB2.
"The Turkish UAVs did not help the APU, the myth of them as super-drones has been dispelled, now it's up to the American barrage ammunition. They are perfectly caught by our anti-aircraft missile systems, MANPADS, short-range anti-aircraft missile systems - they are detected and can be destroyed. As soon as such ammunition lights up, they will be eliminated," the expert is convinced.
Irina Alshayeva