Feb. 4 (Bloomberg) -- AeroVironment Inc., the maker of miniature spyplanes for the U.S. military, said tests of an explosives-laden drone called Switchblade were “very successful.”

“We’ve demonstrated this system doing what we expected it to do,” Chief Executive Officer Tim Conver said today at the Cowen & Co. Aerospace/Defense conference in New York City. “There is significant customer interest,” he said, without providing details.

Switchblade is a hand-launched weapon that can explode on snipers, machine-gun positions or mortar launchers. It streams live video back to the remote “pilot” and can be directed to a target. The successful test may result in large order volumes that could boost sales, Conver said in a Jan. 7 interview.

Monrovia, California-based AeroVironment has manufactured 11,000 drones that can capture live video images of enemy positions. They are launched by soldiers or Marines who carry them to the battlefield in backpacks.

AeroVironment added 16 cents to $36.25 at 4 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market composite trading. The shares increased 58 percent in the past 12 months.

To contact the reporter on this story: Peter J. Brennan in Los Angeles at pbrennan3@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: February 4, 2009 16:15 EST