Marine Corps Awards Organic Precision Fires-Light Task Order to AeroVironment

The U.S. Marine Corps has selected AeroVironment’s latest version of the Switchblade 300 loitering munition system to support the first phase of the Organic Precision Fires-Light program of record under an $8.9 million task order.

The Switchblade 300 Block 20 unmanned aerial vehicle offers precision-guided fires capability to hit beyond-line-of-sight targets.

User assessments, combat deployments and lessons learned from the ongoing Ukraine-Russia were worked into the design of the Block 20 tube-launched drone. The new variant retains and improves the features of its predecessors, including the Explosively Formed Penetrator warhead for armor penetration, AeroVironment said.

According to Brett Hush, AV’s senior vice president for loitering munition systems, the Block 20 variant is ready for production, contributing to the Marines’ combat readiness.

The task order is part of the potential five-year, $249 million multiple-award contract under the OPF-L program. 

A Marine Times report stated that the Marine Corps also awarded task orders to Anduril Industries and Teledyne FLIR.