Lithuania buys mini UAVs to secure the Baltic against Russia

Lithuania’s Ministry of Defense said it has started the procurement procedures for 35 UAV systems, 26 of which are “mini” and 9 “small” types.

“Currently, the Armed Forces of Lithuania do not have suitable tactical drones for reconnaissance and observation. The acquisition of these systems will significantly improve the military intelligence capabilities of the Lithuanian Army,” the Minister of National Defense, Arvydas Anushauskas said.

UAVs purchased to perform intelligence and reconnaissance missions must be of the “mini” or “small” class [under 150 kg] and meet the requirements for this type of system. The main expectations from such a small class of UAVs are; It can be defined as target detection and identification, target tracking, tracking, directing, and correcting artillery fire.

Mini UAVs weigh 20 kg and have the ability to reach an altitude of up to 1000 meters with an effective range of up to 25 km. The “small” type of UAV weighs more than 20 kilograms and has an effective range of up to 50 km and the potential to reach up to 1,500 meters.

The Ministry of National Defense of Lithuania and the Armed Forces of Lithuania attach great importance to the acquisition and integration of new reconnaissance and combat vehicles aimed at improving the combat capabilities of the Armed Forces of Lithuania.

It is known that the Ministry of National Defense of Lithuania continues negotiations with the US government to purchase a new UAV in addition to the ones already purchased. The Lithuanian military’s demand for these meetings is reported to be the Switchblade UAV.

UAV kamikaze Switchblade

Supporting conventional or special operations forces in the field or from fixed defensive positions, the battle-proven Switchblade 300 with its patented wave shutdown is an ideal cruise missile for use against non-line-of-sight targets.

Backpackable and rapidly deployable from air, sea, or land platforms, the Switchblade 300 provides real-time GPS coordinates and video-enhanced lethality for precision targeting with low side effects. In addition to the striking feature, the Switchblade is also used for reconnaissance and surveillance.