{"id":4843,"date":"2026-05-05T16:45:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T16:45:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/?p=4843"},"modified":"2026-05-05T16:45:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T16:45:09","slug":"us-army-selects-avs-switchblade-400-for-lasso-program","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/?p=4843","title":{"rendered":"US Army Selects AV\u2019s Switchblade 400 for LASSO Program"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Award establishes Switchblade 400 as key component of Army\u2019s enduring next-generation loitering munition program<\/em><\/center><\/p>\n

ARLINGTON, Va.\u2013 AeroVironment, Inc.<\/a> (\u201cAV\u201d) (NASDAQ: AVAV) today announced that it has been awarded a prototype agreement from the U.S. Army for the Low-Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance (LASSO) program to support the rapid development, delivery and testing of the Switchblade\u00ae 400 loitering munition.<\/p>\n

The award establishes Switchblade 400, AV\u2019s medium-range, man-portable, anti-armor loitering munition, as a key component of the Army\u2019s LASSO program, supporting the service\u2019s modernization priorities for rapidly deployable, precision strike capabilities that can operate effectively in contested environments.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis award reflects the Army\u2019s confidence not only in Switchblade 400, but in AV\u2019s ability to deliver at scale,\u201d said Trace Stevenson, President of Autonomous Systems at AV. \u201cBeing selected under the LASSO program positions AV as a long-term partner to the Army as it modernizes its loitering munition capabilities, from development and testing through production, fielding, and continuous capability evolution.\u201d<\/p>\n

The first loitering munition purpose-built to operate within AV_Halo\u2122, AV\u2019s modular command-and-control ecosystem, Switchblade 400 incorporates advanced aided target recognition (ATR) and autonomous capabilities to detect, classify, and engage targets, day or night, in denied and contested environments while delivering the same anti-armor performance comparable to larger systems, like the Switchblade 600 Blk 2.<\/p>\n

Core to Switchblade 400 is the implementation of a Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA) in system design to ensure long-term system resilience and relevance allowing for interoperability, upgradeability, and affordability as missions evolve.<\/p>\n

Known as the \u201cLightweight Tank Destroyer,\u201d and sized to fit common launch tubes, Switchblade 400 enables a sensor-to-shooter concept of operations that allows a single soldier to detect, identify, and engage targets through a unified, networked architecture \u2013 shortening decision timelines while increasing precision, speed, and operational flexibility at the tactical edge. The system features an all-up round (AUR) weighing under 40 pounds that provides the soldier with a lightweight, man-portable, anti-tank weapon system.<\/p>\n

\u201cSwitchblade 400 is the product of continuous feedback from the field and the soldiers who rely on our systems in real-world operations,\u201d said Brian Young, Senior Vice President of Loitering Munitions at AV. \u201cWe are constantly leaning forward, integrating new capabilities, enhancing performance, and reducing the burden on the warfighter. That soldier-driven approach is central to how we develop, test, and deliver capability for the Army.\u201d<\/p>\n

The new OTA award under LASSO follows a recent $186 million delivery order from the U.S. Army for Switchblade\u00ae 600 Block 2 and Switchblade\u00ae 300 Block 20 explosively formed penetrator (EFP) loitering munition systems, part of the Army\u2019s existing five-year, $990 million Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract under the Lethal Unmanned Systems (LUS) Directed Requirement (DR), which was awarded in August 2024. It was the Army\u2019s first Switchblade order containing EFP payload, delivering enhanced lethality against armored threats.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Army\u2019s trust in the Switchblade family has been earned through years of real-world use by soldiers who rely on these systems every day,\u201d said Jimmy Jenkins, Executive Vice President of Precision Strike and Defense Systems at AV. \u201cThat trust reflects a clear operational need for precision, speed, and adaptability at the tactical edge\u2014capabilities the Switchblade family is designed to deliver as missions and threats continue to change.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Award establishes Switchblade 400 as key component of Army\u2019s enduring next-generation loitering munition program ARLINGTON, Va.\u2013 AeroVironment, Inc. (\u201cAV\u201d) (NASDAQ: AVAV) today announced that it has been awarded a prototype agreement from the U.S. Army for the Low-Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance (LASSO) program to support the rapid development, delivery and testing of the Switchblade\u00ae […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4844,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-4843","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-army"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4843","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4843"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4843\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4845,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4843\/revisions\/4845"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4844"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4843"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4843"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4843"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}