The price and size reductions of PGMs have made the infantry's life even more horrible. Before, they'd rarely be worth a full JDAM-equivalent (unless you were up against the US, which doesn't see a problem with throwing 250kg bombs at a dude and his camel), but now infantry is no longer protected by "not being worth it". Tactics are going to have to adapt.
I noticed some people here are questioning the use of carbon here, but consider: If Russia of all militaries decides not cheaping out is worth it, it's probably worth it.
Or it's simply aerospace At small production carbon fiber can actually be more cost effective than making stupidly expensive forms for bending aluminium or mold injection of styrofoam Also weight consideration and well it's launched from tube so it needs to be a lot more sturdy Tho at the some time making something tube launched when it doesn't need to be might be just pure let's copy something while not using it in even remotely same situation Switchblades and it's equivalents are for like spec ops launching tiny drone to kill essentially like one person maybe damage/destroy something important
@@CzornyLisek maybe. But the very similar overall design to the 300 and 600 only indicates similarities to what's known. I think your point about low production costs really does make alot of sense with this being a prototype though. Because most drones and loitering munitions of this size just use plastic and maybe a bit of metal where necessary for their airframes, and they are quite attritable. And that's without having explosives on board.
I understand that the Switchblade is no longer considered cost-effective in Ukraine due to its high cost, small warhead, and vulnerability to electronic jamming. The Ukrainians have mostly switched over to using commercial quadcopter FPV drones. Nevertheless, is Ukraine still using the Switchblade on the battlefield?
I mean its basically an RC plane with folding wings, HE material, and shot out of a tube. There's not much more you can do "reverse engineer" it. Its like saying the Russians copied the idea of a handgun because their handgun has a magazine in the grip and a reciprocating slide. These are just inherent features of this weapons class. It is concerning they used carbon fiber construction. That looks prohibitively expensive for mass production. I would've expected glass reinforced nylon or maybe even aluminum. Perhaps it has something to do with the velocity when launched from the tube.
The Russians did copy several handguns 😂 the Mak is a direct copy of a PP with one or two changes and there is more to a sidearm than simply a slide. Is it a Browning derived locked breech? (the TT33) or could it be straight blow back like a PP? (Makarov). Maybe its gas delayed like a Hk P7? Perhaps its got a rotating barrel like the French MAB? Or is it a dropping wedge like a Walther P38? These things matter. 0:02
@@OntarioBearHunter It's a battery pusher so it's not that fast and I can assure you CF isn't cheap for the Russians right now. As I will point out again this is a disposable munition.
@@OntarioBearHunter It depends. You can have a good carbon structure, and you can have a shitty one. The shell is of course pennies compared to the proper optoelectronics costs for a good War-Mate.
@@OntarioBearHunter Carbon fiber is not cheap to produce. Because the production can not be automated easily, it has to be hand laid. It makes no sense to make a disposable one time use weapon out of carbon fiber. The marginal gains in range or payload does not justify the cost.
Must be cheaper than lancet drones. Well whatever the case. The number of drone attacks by Russia has been steadily increasing. It’s safe to say they have a lot and then some.
The switchblade has a small warhead for a reason. It's not a javelin. It's designed to be a small warhead that hits exactly where you need it to hit. FPV's are not nearly as consistent with their hits. The people hating the switchblade want it to be something it's not.
@@SlavicCelerythat makes absolutely no sense. The Switchblade has a small warhead because that's what they can fit in it. If they could they would put a 1000 pound warhead in it.
@@Kosme88 And if you want to argue with that point... They put flipping swords on a hellfire missile. Repeat after me: You shape a warhead around expected results. Not all results need a 1k warhead.
Switchblade 300 was made for special forces to assasinate a single person with no collateral damage. In a conventional war it could be used against a sniper, maschine gun or ATGM. It is so small that a infantry squad can carry some in addition to it's other stuff. But I agree, that in a conventional war a larger weapon is more useful.
Its definitely inspired by a switchblade and copies most of its better features but unlike some more complicated systems Russia does have the technological and industrial base to design and manufacture an analog to switchblade without outright copying it. I'm not saying it isn't a switchblade copy. Just that its not a true reverse engineered product since for that to make sense russia would need to lack the ability to design such a system without directly copying the switchblade.
@@blueberrywilbur315 Ok, M16 copy of the STG-44, 5.56 cartridge is a copycat of FN-FAL original cartridge, the whole of the American space and ICBM is a copycat of the Third Reich analogs, in fact, german engineers designed it in the first place
Surely this Russian copy of the switchblade is cheaper to manufacture and with greater reach in a few years we will see the copies of the Javelin NLAW or the Bayraktar TB2... 🤔
I doubt it. They can’t produce a lot of the chips and technology required to build those things. They rely on outside source for those materials. Which is why they can’t produce a lot of their own stuff nowadays.
@@overdrivelzma.9219 No there’s not. The chips used that are produced by the west are held very tightly. Even if Russia were to acquire them through shell companies(which is how they obtain certain small arms), they wouldn’t be able to get them in any significant numbers. Nor would they be able to reverse engineer them. Russia is basically screwed until the war is over.
@AbjeetThakur how are Russian tanks doing last time I checked. Russia lost 2,239 tanks that are fully destroyed and that's not including damaged or captured or abandon tanks in that number so before you talk about o we're going to destroy all American and Western equipment just remember how much you guys lost and are still losing to this way haha 🤣🤣
@@TheArmourersBench I did, hence my comment to do better. But let's look at your effort into the origins. I guess we can start with the fact you named the company that *assembles* the drone wrong. Multiple times. Its Android Technics (НПО «Андроидная техника» in Russian). Normally this wouldn't matter and its an easy translate error, but it shows to me you likely didn't even try to look into the company as you wouldn't find it under that name. Any serious effort in that direction will show it had 100% of anything with a transistor, and 100% of the fine mechanics imported. Even things that surprised me like ball bearings and heavier machinery components. It's easy to find information because they are on sanctions lists in both EU and US and you can see what they are banned from doing. About 5 minutes spent and you realise they are an import and assemble operation. I'd advise you to then go and visit AeroVironment's web site and compare. Talking about Android technics and development in the same sentence is laughable, hence my comment about the new Lada. So is the idea they reverse-engineered anything from the switchblade past a cylindrical tube. Unless, of course, you think a company that exists since 2005 and supposedly makes cutting edge military tech needs to supplement their business offering with 3d printing on demand, as advertised on their site. That drone was 100% developed, and 90 to 100% its parts manufactured in China. Then *assembled* in Russia as a Android Technics product. Is it new? Sure. Is it Russian - as much as the Shahed after you paint "Геран" on it.
Thanks for watching, check out the accompanying article here:
armourersbench.com/2023/09/24/bas-80-russias-switchblade-loitering-munition/
The price and size reductions of PGMs have made the infantry's life even more horrible. Before, they'd rarely be worth a full JDAM-equivalent (unless you were up against the US, which doesn't see a problem with throwing 250kg bombs at a dude and his camel), but now infantry is no longer protected by "not being worth it". Tactics are going to have to adapt.
The adaptation will be ai and robotics. War is just too lethal now. Hyper lethal.
@@pantherowow77nah infantry aren’t going anyway anytime soon. Robots are advanced enough to replace them.
I noticed some people here are questioning the use of carbon here, but consider:
If Russia of all militaries decides not cheaping out is worth it, it's probably worth it.
This right here.
Or it's simply aerospace
At small production carbon fiber can actually be more cost effective than making stupidly expensive forms for bending aluminium or mold injection of styrofoam
Also weight consideration and well it's launched from tube so it needs to be a lot more sturdy
Tho at the some time making something tube launched when it doesn't need to be might be just pure let's copy something while not using it in even remotely same situation
Switchblades and it's equivalents are for like spec ops launching tiny drone to kill essentially like one person maybe damage/destroy something important
@@CzornyLisek maybe. But the very similar overall design to the 300 and 600 only indicates similarities to what's known. I think your point about low production costs really does make alot of sense with this being a prototype though. Because most drones and loitering munitions of this size just use plastic and maybe a bit of metal where necessary for their airframes, and they are quite attritable. And that's without having explosives on board.
It’s not real carbon fiber…. Just a pattern
I understand that the Switchblade is no longer considered cost-effective in Ukraine due to its high cost, small warhead, and vulnerability to electronic jamming. The Ukrainians have mostly switched over to using commercial quadcopter FPV drones. Nevertheless, is Ukraine still using the Switchblade on the battlefield?
Indeed. You seen them from time to time. The FPVs are definitely more common.
I mean its basically an RC plane with folding wings, HE material, and shot out of a tube. There's not much more you can do "reverse engineer" it. Its like saying the Russians copied the idea of a handgun because their handgun has a magazine in the grip and a reciprocating slide. These are just inherent features of this weapons class.
It is concerning they used carbon fiber construction. That looks prohibitively expensive for mass production. I would've expected glass reinforced nylon or maybe even aluminum. Perhaps it has something to do with the velocity when launched from the tube.
The Russians did copy several handguns 😂 the Mak is a direct copy of a PP with one or two changes and there is more to a sidearm than simply a slide. Is it a Browning derived locked breech? (the TT33) or could it be straight blow back like a PP? (Makarov). Maybe its gas delayed like a Hk P7? Perhaps its got a rotating barrel like the French MAB? Or is it a dropping wedge like a Walther P38? These things matter. 0:02
Cheaper to use modern production method. Than using an outdated method.
I'm bemused as to why they have gone with carbon fibre on a prop driven disposable munition when maker foam or cardboard works just fine.
strength for speed and CF is pretty cheap .
@@OntarioBearHunter It's a battery pusher so it's not that fast and I can assure you CF isn't cheap for the Russians right now. As I will point out again this is a disposable munition.
@@OntarioBearHunter It depends. You can have a good carbon structure, and you can have a shitty one. The shell is of course pennies compared to the proper optoelectronics costs for a good War-Mate.
Well, it works better on a kamikaze drone than on a submersible at least....
@@OntarioBearHunter Carbon fiber is not cheap to produce. Because the production can not be automated easily, it has to be hand laid. It makes no sense to make a disposable one time use weapon out of carbon fiber. The marginal gains in range or payload does not justify the cost.
Must be cheaper than lancet drones. Well whatever the case. The number of drone attacks by Russia has been steadily increasing. It’s safe to say they have a lot and then some.
2:05 you may wanna correct the conversion 80 mi /30 km?
18 miles
This looks like it will have the same drawback the Switchblade 300 has, which is too small of a warhead to significantly damage most targets.
The switchblade has a small warhead for a reason. It's not a javelin. It's designed to be a small warhead that hits exactly where you need it to hit. FPV's are not nearly as consistent with their hits.
The people hating the switchblade want it to be something it's not.
@@SlavicCelerythat makes absolutely no sense. The Switchblade has a small warhead because that's what they can fit in it. If they could they would put a 1000 pound warhead in it.
@@Kosme88Not every situation needs a JDAM. Not every situation needs a Javelin. You shape the round to the task at hand. This is basic field craft.
@@Kosme88 And if you want to argue with that point... They put flipping swords on a hellfire missile.
Repeat after me: You shape a warhead around expected results. Not all results need a 1k warhead.
Switchblade 300 was made for special forces to assasinate a single person with no collateral damage. In a conventional war it could be used against a sniper, maschine gun or ATGM. It is so small that a infantry squad can carry some in addition to it's other stuff.
But I agree, that in a conventional war a larger weapon is more useful.
No doubt, it's a reverse engineered copy of Switchblade.
Its definitely inspired by a switchblade and copies most of its better features but unlike some more complicated systems Russia does have the technological and industrial base to design and manufacture an analog to switchblade without outright copying it. I'm not saying it isn't a switchblade copy. Just that its not a true reverse engineered product since for that to make sense russia would need to lack the ability to design such a system without directly copying the switchblade.
@@LordOceanusSo a copy, you don’t need to make excuses for Russia kid 😂😂😂
@@blueberrywilbur315
Ok, M16 copy of the STG-44, 5.56 cartridge is a copycat of FN-FAL original cartridge, the whole of the American space and ICBM is a copycat of the Third Reich analogs, in fact, german engineers designed it in the first place
@@blueberrywilbur315it's not a copy since Russia barely has anything to match what's inside the switchblade get it? Geez
@@motoKJ Mind your business kid Geez K
i need the 417 video, i need it now
If you see any let me know, I've seen just a couple so far.
Question is, would be cost effective? or just an overpriced barely effective like the Swithblade 300?
From Anti-Tank missiles to Suicide Drones.
Modern Warfare at it's finest.
Surely this Russian copy of the switchblade is cheaper to manufacture and with greater reach in a few years we will see the copies of the Javelin NLAW or the Bayraktar TB2... 🤔
I doubt it. They can’t produce a lot of the chips and technology required to build those things. They rely on outside source for those materials. Which is why they can’t produce a lot of their own stuff nowadays.
@darklyripley6138 There is always the black market as a means to acquire chip tegnology and other tegnologies.
@@overdrivelzma.9219 No there’s not. The chips used that are produced by the west are held very tightly. Even if Russia were to acquire them through shell companies(which is how they obtain certain small arms), they wouldn’t be able to get them in any significant numbers. Nor would they be able to reverse engineer them. Russia is basically screwed until the war is over.
"surely"
3 day special military operation. 🤡
future will show the mentioned capabilities are overstated, like ru often does.
Considering that Ukrainians were highly disappointed with the Switchblade, this seems like an odd choice.
From the country that brought you the "Concordski". 😁
It seems that Russians are slowly becoming more and more competent.
They made 10 of these.
the question is how many of these units they have?
It just seems inferior to the lancet and likely more expensive than an FPV drone.
slow.. fpv drone is 50-100kph faster. a fraction of the cost but much less range
It's a complete copy reverse copied from America's version😅
Who cares? Use what works
It's the same category weapon but it's build completely differently so not copy of any kind
@AbjeetThakur how are Russian tanks doing last time I checked. Russia lost 2,239 tanks that are fully destroyed and that's not including damaged or captured or abandon tanks in that number so before you talk about o we're going to destroy all American and Western equipment just remember how much you guys lost and are still losing to this way haha 🤣🤣
That is as much Russian as the new Lada. Try to do better next time
Potential origins l iterally discussed in the video. Thanks for watching.
@@TheArmourersBench I did, hence my comment to do better. But let's look at your effort into the origins. I guess we can start with the fact you named the company that *assembles* the drone wrong. Multiple times. Its Android Technics (НПО «Андроидная техника» in Russian). Normally this wouldn't matter and its an easy translate error, but it shows to me you likely didn't even try to look into the company as you wouldn't find it under that name. Any serious effort in that direction will show it had 100% of anything with a transistor, and 100% of the fine mechanics imported. Even things that surprised me like ball bearings and heavier machinery components. It's easy to find information because they are on sanctions lists in both EU and US and you can see what they are banned from doing. About 5 minutes spent and you realise they are an import and assemble operation. I'd advise you to then go and visit AeroVironment's web site and compare. Talking about Android technics and development in the same sentence is laughable, hence my comment about the new Lada. So is the idea they reverse-engineered anything from the switchblade past a cylindrical tube. Unless, of course, you think a company that exists since 2005 and supposedly makes cutting edge military tech needs to supplement their business offering with 3d printing on demand, as advertised on their site. That drone was 100% developed, and 90 to 100% its parts manufactured in China. Then *assembled* in Russia as a Android Technics product. Is it new? Sure. Is it Russian - as much as the Shahed after you paint "Геран" on it.
Слава Украине и всем её друзьям
Скорейшей победы Украине надо российскими фашистскими тварями!💙💛
Fake