Loitering munition for the US Marine Corps: Anduril supplies Bolt-M for the OPF-L programme

With Anduril's Bolt-M, the US Marine Corps (USMC) is adding another loitering munition to its drone portfolio – it is being procured under the Organic Precision Fires-Light (OPF-L) programme. According to the USMC, the new OPF-L system is to give platoons and companies a "portable, organic and easy-to-use precision strike capability for engaging targets beyond line of sight".

The contract was awarded only after Anduril had undergone 13 months of rigorous testing. During this period, the company provided an initial tranche of more than 250 Bolt-M systems, whose performance was tested against a wide range of safety, environmental and performance requirements. According to the USMC, over hundreds of flights Bolt-M demonstrated "category-leading range, endurance and payload capacity against multiple target profiles". At the end of the successful trials, Bolt-M was selected for initial fielding.

More than 600 loitering munition systems by 2027

In the next programme phase, the USMC will receive more than 600 Bolt-M systems from Anduril between February 2026 and April 2027, including ground stations and additional equipment. The first operational Marine units are to receive Bolt-M from summer 2026; there, end users will be trained in and employ the organic precision strike options with loitering capability in tactical formations.

To meet the needs of the OPF-L programme and other projects, Anduril has at the same time invested in larger production capacity and scalable processes. For Bolt, design, supply chain, quality, manufacturing engineering and operations were optimised, as was the production facility itself. More than 100 so-called all-up rounds can now be produced per month. Before the end of this year, Anduril aims to reach a sustainable rate of more than 175 systems per month across all Bolt variants combined. The contract is worth around 20.5 million euros.

As early as April 2024, the USMC had commissioned AeroVironment within OPF-L to supply the Switchblade 300 Block 20 loitering munition. In December 2025, Teledyne received a further order, for more than 600 units of the Rogue 1 loitering munition.