Pentagon preparing contract for Switchblade 600 kamikaze drones for Ukraine

The U.S. Department of Defense this September plans to conclude a contract for the production of ten Switchblade 600 kamikaze drones for Ukraine.

That's according to Defense News and the Pentagon's press service, Ukrinform reports.

Back in the spring of 2022, the U.S. approved the transfer of Switchblade Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems to Ukraine, but then these were Switchblade 300 drones, designed to destroy small targets.

The 300 variant weighs 5.5 pounds (2.5 kg), can fly 10 kilometers and loiter 15 minutes, while the 120-pound (54.4 kg) 600 version can fly 40 kilometers and loiter in the air for 40 minutes, according to the manufacturer.

"They have the same name, but they’re very different systems with very different target sets ― and they’d both be incredibly helpful to Ukrainian forces now and in the coming weeks," said Bradley Bowman, senior director of the Center on Military and Political Power at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.