AeroVironment says Switchblade has not received export approval

AeroVironment said it has not yet received government approval to sell its Switchblade tactical missile system to foreign nations, but remains “optimistic that we will be able to achieve that sometime in the near future.”

Speaking to analysts this week, Wahid Nawabi, the company's chief executive, said AeroVironment sees a significant opportunity internationally for the system.

"We have been a believer of that in the past; we continue to be a believer in that today," he said. "We are also very aggressively working that with both our international potential interested customers as well as with the U.S. Department of State and other agencies that influence this process."

However, he said the company has not yet received final approval.

"But that does not mean that it's not achievable. We still feel very strongly that it's a matter of when versus if," Nawabi said. "The process is pretty long and, knowing that this is a very differentiated, innovative capability obviously our U.S. government, rightfully so, is being very careful in assessing it and granting the export license."

Meanwhile, AeroVironment reported this week sales in its most recent quarter reached $75.3 million, up 38 percent from the same three-month period the prior year. The company's quarterly profit hit $8.4 million, up from a $776,000 loss a year earlier.