The M1A2 Abrams SEPv3 tank has received a launch system for Switchblade munitions.
The American M1A2 Abrams SEPv3 tank has been equipped with the Precision Effects & Reconnaissance, Canister-Housed (PERCH) launch system, allowing the use of loitering munitions Switchblade 300 and Switchblade 600 supplied to the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) by the American company AeroVironment. This was reported by General Dynamics Land Systems.
The testing of the M1A2 Abrams SEPv3, PERCH, and Switchblade combination took place during exercises of the U.S. Army engineering units at Fort Hood in Texas. During the tests, the Switchblade 300 and Switchblade 600 drones helped hit targets beyond the line of sight.
"PERCH allows units to employ loitering munitions Switchblade at great distances on the battlefield while remaining covert and protected," said Jim Pasquarette, Vice President of Strategy and Business Development at General Dynamics Land Systems.
In October, the Army Recognition portal reported that the PERCH system was presented at the Association of the U.S. Army exhibition, which allows serial M1A2 Abrams tanks to be equipped with Switchblade kamikaze drones.
In October, Defense News noted that the AFU often transports Switchblade munitions in the back of a truck, launching them from there. According to Brian Young, who is responsible for the Switchblade program at AeroVironment, the AFU primarily uses the Switchblade 600 Block 1 munitions. The director stated that about three thousand of these loitering munitions have been produced, and the AFU mainly uses Switchblade against armored vehicles.
In August 2024, the publication reported that AeroVironment and the Pentagon signed a contract for the supply of Switchblade unmanned aerial vehicles to the U.S. Army worth about one billion dollars.
