US-made “Tank Killer” Switchblade destroys a Russian air defense system in rare video

New footage shows a U.S.-made Ukrainian drone destroying a Russian short-range anti-aircraft missile system along the front line during more than two and a half years of heavy warfare.

The 14th Ukrainian Regiment of Unmanned Aviation Systems, which is part of the newly formed branch of the Unmanned Systems Forces of the Kyiv Armed Forces, released the footage on Monday It said it showed the explosive Switchblade-600 drone targeting and hitting Russia’s Tor air defense system.

The footage was shared on social networks by open sources of intelligence and the Ministry of Defense of Kyiv. – said the government of Ukraine its fighters used two drones to destroy the air defense system, but did not specify when or where it was taken down.

Newsweek was unable to independently verify the footage and reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry for comment via email.

The Tor family of air defense systems are short-range mobile surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems capable of detecting and intercepting threats at a distance of approximately 7 to 10 miles, according to the US Center for Strategic Studies. and international It is also known for its NATO name SA-15 Gauntlet.

Each Tor system costs about 25 million dollars, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine reported.

The Tor “is commonly used to hunt UAVs,” the 14th Regiment said in a statement. “But on this beautiful day, the roles were reversed: the hunter became the hunted.”

Ukraine persistently attacked Russian air defense systems, in particular the ground-based Tor, Buk, Pantsir and S-400.

In June, a Ukrainian charitable organization that supports the Kyiv military published footage showing how The Switchblade drone targets a Russian Buk-M2 anti-aircraft missile. launcher of the system behind the front line in the Russian-controlled territory covered by hostilities in eastern Ukraine, Donetsk region.

The US has provided several types of drones to Ukraine as part of military aid packages, including the Switchblade, Phoenix Ghost and CyberLux K8. The US Defense Ministry does not specify how many Switchblade drones were sent to Ukraine.

Videos circulating online as far back as May 2022 show Ukrainian forces using Switchblade suicide drones, which have retractable arrow-blade wings and are made by US defense contractor AeroVironment, to target Russian forces.

According to the manufacturer, the larger 600 model can travel for up to 40 minutes and has an anti-armor warhead designed for protected targets located further away. It has a range of about 40 kilometers or 25 miles, designed to destroy enemy tanks and armored vehicles scattered across the battlefield.

The smaller 300 variant can fly for up to 15 minutes for a maximum distance of about six miles.

Charlie Dean, AeroVironment’s vice president of global business development and marketing, said Newsweek In October 2023, the Switchblade 600 will soon outnumber the Switchblade 300 in use in Ukraine.

Switchblade 600 is “extremely important for the defense of Ukraine”, Dean said then.