The very sharp increase in the number of drone-kamikazes on the Ukrainian battlefield constitutes, in many respects, a significant strategic break caused by the course of the war. This is demonstrated by the sharp increase in the acquisition of such equipment by a growing number of countries, from manufacturers who, for their part, are no longer afraid to invest with their own funds, in order to develop this type of armament, qualified of “remotely operated munitions” (MTO).
At the start of the Ukrainian conflict, this was still far from obvious. But, a month later, at the end of March 2022, following the insistent request of the Ukrainians, the United States decided to circumvent certain provisions of their own legislation and to export the first Western MTOs to Ukraine: drones called “Switchblade », at this time numbered about a hundred. Until now, these models of small planes guided by GPS and camera had hardly been tested during external operations.
In the context of the long arms race which then began in Ukraine, the Switchblades very quickly appeared, in the eyes of the Pentagon, to be more economical than other comparable types of armament, for example Javelin-type anti-tank missiles. More than a thousand Switchblade drones have been manufactured for kyiv since the start of the war, AeroVironment, the world’s leading American manufacturer on this market, unveiled in mid-May. Another type of drone-kamikaze was later sent to Ukraine by the United States – the Phoenix Ghost – but the number of devices delivered was not communicated.
A “temporary” solution
At the same time, the conflict has shaken up the reservations that many Western countries may have had regarding the use of drone-kamikazes. The first European country to have assumed the acquisition of remotely operated ammunition is Lithuania, with the purchase of Switchblade, in December 2022. In February, Estonia followed suit, with an announced contract of more than 100 million euros. euros, spent with an Israeli company, in order to equip its forces by 2025.
Italy and France have, for their part, taken the plunge in recent months. Italy with a contract of 4 million euros with a consortium bringing together the Israeli UVision and the German group Rheinmetall, France by choosing the Switchblade from AeroVironment. An option made possible by the decision of the American administration to once again lift export restrictions for its prowling ammunition, and to open this market, beyond Ukraine, to around twenty of its allies and partners.
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