AeroVironment Switchblade vs Terminal Autonomy AQ-400 Scythe

FORCETALLY

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ALoitering munitions

AeroVironment Switchblade

Loitering missile

BLoitering munitions

Terminal Autonomy AQ-400 Scythe

One-way attack drone

First system

Second system

Measured figures

Head to head

12 of 28 rows sourced on both sides

1.3mSwitchblade 600

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Length

All recorded figures & sources

0.495 m

Switchblade 300

Single source

1.3 m

Switchblade 600

Single source

Configuration

Details

AeroVironment Switchblade and Terminal Autonomy AQ-400 Scythe configuration
Specification	AeroVironment Switchblade	Terminal Autonomy AQ-400 Scythe
Type	Loitering missile^[source]	One-way attack drone^[source]
Place of origin	United States^[source]	Ukraine^[source]
In service	2011–present^[source]	2023–present^[source]
Used by	United States Army , United States Marine Corps , Armed Forces of Ukraine , Lithuanian Armed Forces , United States Navy^[source]

Wars	War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Operation Inherent Resolve in Iraq Russo-Ukrainian war (2022–present)^[source]	Russian invasion of Ukraine^[source]

Designed	2010^[source]	2022-2023^[source]

Manufacturer	AeroVironment^[source]	Terminal Autonomy^[source]

Produced	2011–present^[source]	2023-present^[source]

Variants	Switchblade 300, Switchblade 600, Blackwing^[source]	—

Flight altitude	<150 m (500 ft)^[source]	30–3,000 m (98–9,843 ft)^[source]

Guidance system	Autonomous; manual^[source]	—

Launch platform	Portable tube; multipack; assorted vehicles^[source]	—

Unit cost	—	USD $30,000^[source]

Warhead	—	43 kg (95 lb)^[source]

Blast yield	—	32 kg (71 lb)^[source]

Role	—	one-way attack drone^[source]

Source measurement	—	It has two sets of wings, one forward and one rear, with a wingspan of 2.3 m; 30 fully-assembled Scythes can be stacked in one shipping container for transport.^[source]Terminal Autonomy AQ-400 Scythe · Design; only the objects and conditions stated in this passage Overall weight is 100 kg with a 43 kg payload, of which 32 kg is the warhead which can be thermobaric or hold two 122 mm artillery shells.^[source]Terminal Autonomy AQ-400 Scythe · Design; only the objects and conditions stated in this passage Using the standard gas engine and pusher propeller , the AQ-400 has a cruise speed of 144 km/h (89 mph), a top speed of 200 km/h, endurance of 6.5 hours, and a strike range of 750 km; depending on the engine option, range could be increased as far as 900 km (560 mi), or payload increased to 70 kg (150 lb) at a reduced range.^[source]Terminal Autonomy AQ-400 Scythe · Design; only the objects and conditions stated in this passage Guidance at low altitude uses a laser altimeter to approach at 30 m to minimize the effects of electronic warfare to jam GPS navigation until very close to the target. At high altitudes of 3,000 m, it navigates with a visual positioning system using roads and other visible landmarks. A video link option is available so an operator can manually guide the drone to hit moving targets, but this adds costs and only works at shorter ranges. The basic Scythe airframe costs USD $15,000, which increases to USD$30,000 with a guidance system and other features; this compares to around USD$20,000 for a Shahed-136 one-way attack munition used by Russia . Swarms can use a leader-follower method, where one lead drone carrying a navigation system is followed by nine basic drones, which help saturate the target area and draw off enemy defenses from the lethal version. The use of such drones is intended to overwhelm air defenses as well as make them expend expensive interceptors against cheaper targets, exhausting their supplies over time.^[source]Terminal Autonomy AQ-400 Scythe · Design; only the objects and conditions stated in this passage

Source measurement

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It has two sets of wings, one forward and one rear, with a wingspan of 2.3 m; 30 fully-assembled Scythes can be stacked in one shipping container for transport.^[source]Terminal Autonomy AQ-400 Scythe · Design; only the objects and conditions stated in this passage

Overall weight is 100 kg with a 43 kg payload, of which 32 kg is the warhead which can be thermobaric or hold two 122 mm artillery shells.^[source]Terminal Autonomy AQ-400 Scythe · Design; only the objects and conditions stated in this passage

Using the standard gas engine and pusher propeller , the AQ-400 has a cruise speed of 144 km/h (89 mph), a top speed of 200 km/h, endurance of 6.5 hours, and a strike range of 750 km; depending on the engine option, range could be increased as far as 900 km (560 mi), or payload increased to 70 kg (150 lb) at a reduced range.^[source]Terminal Autonomy AQ-400 Scythe · Design; only the objects and conditions stated in this passage

Guidance at low altitude uses a laser altimeter to approach at 30 m to minimize the effects of electronic warfare to jam GPS navigation until very close to the target. At high altitudes of 3,000 m, it navigates with a visual positioning system using roads and other visible landmarks. A video link option is available so an operator can manually guide the drone to hit moving targets, but this adds costs and only works at shorter ranges. The basic Scythe airframe costs USD $15,000, which increases to USD$30,000 with a guidance system and other features; this compares to around USD$20,000 for a Shahed-136 one-way attack munition used by Russia . Swarms can use a leader-follower method, where one lead drone carrying a navigation system is followed by nine basic drones, which help saturate the target area and draw off enemy defenses from the lethal version. The use of such drones is intended to overwhelm air defenses as well as make them expend expensive interceptors against cheaper targets, exhausting their supplies over time.^[source]Terminal Autonomy AQ-400 Scythe · Design; only the objects and conditions stated in this passage