Aircraft ordnance

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Grumman A-6 Intruder (A2F-1) attack aircraft displaying its weapons array, 1962 Grumman A-6A Intruder weapon load display, 1962 (NNAM.2011.003.240.028).jpg
Grumman A-6 Intruder (A2F-1) attack aircraft displaying its weapons array, 1962
US Navy Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet multirole combat aircraft illustrating its array of weapons-type capabilities; All Hands magazine of the US Navy 1997 Drawing of FA-18E Super Hornet with armaments 1997.png
US Navy Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet multirole combat aircraft illustrating its array of weapons-type capabilities; All Hands magazine of the US Navy 1997
B-52H Stratofortress subsonic strategic bomber displaying its weapons array, 2006 B-52H static display arms 06.jpg
B-52H Stratofortress subsonic strategic bomber displaying its weapons array, 2006

Aircraft ordnance or ordnance (in the context of military aviation) is any expendable weaponry (e.g. bombs, missiles, rockets and gun ammunition) used by military aircraft. The term is often used when describing the payload of air-to-ground weaponry that can be carried by the aircraft or the weight that has been dropped in combat.[ citation needed ] Aircraft ordnance also includes air-to-air, anti-ship and anti-submarine weapons.

Contents

Some aircraft types can carry a wide variety of ordnance – for example, the Fairchild AU-23 Peacemaker could use forward-firing gun pods, 500 and 250 pound bombs, napalm units, cluster bomb units, flares, rockets, smoke grenades and propaganda leaflet dispensers. [1]

Ordnance can be carried in a bomb bay or hung from a hardpoint.

For many weapons there is a limit to the length of time they can be flown (e.g. because of vibration damage); after this their safety or effectiveness is not guaranteed. This can be a problem if weapons designed for high intensity conflict are carried on multiple missions in a long counter-insurgency campaign. [2]

History

Guided and unguided Ordnance

Airman inspecting a Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) after being loaded onto an F-22 Raptor F-22 Raptor - 090414-F-3108S-105.jpg
Airman inspecting a Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) after being loaded onto an F-22 Raptor
A crew member of a British SS 'Z' Class airship about to throw a bomb from the rear cockpit of the gondola. SSZ class blimp dropping bomb WWI IWM Q 67695.jpg
A crew member of a British SS 'Z' Class airship about to throw a bomb from the rear cockpit of the gondola.

Ordnance can be divided into guided and unguided categories based on their targeting capabilities. Guided ordnance, such as Precision-guided munitions (PGMs), use advanced technologies like GPS, infared, radar or laser tracking to precisely hit designated targets. [3] [4] [5] Unguided ordnance, commonly known as "dumb bombs," lack guidance systems and rely on the aircraft’s release parameters to strike a target. Though less accurate, unguided bombs are often used for area strikes and are more cost-effective. [5]

Air-to-Ground vs. Air-to-Air Ordnance

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anti-aircraft warfare</span> Measures to combat enemy aerial forces

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The Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) is a guidance kit that converts unguided bombs, or "dumb bombs", into all-weather precision-guided munitions (PGMs). JDAM-equipped bombs are guided by an integrated inertial guidance system coupled to a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver, giving them a published range of up to 15 nautical miles (28 km). JDAM-equipped bombs range from 500 to 2,000 pounds. The JDAM's guidance system was jointly developed by the United States Air Force and United States Navy, hence the "joint" in JDAM. When installed on a bomb, the JDAM kit is given a GBU identifier, superseding the Mark 80 or BLU nomenclature of the bomb to which it is attached.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laser-guided bomb</span> Type of guided bomb

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airstrike</span> Attack on a specific objective by military aircraft during an offensive mission

An airstrike, air strike, or air raid is an offensive operation carried out by aircraft. Air strikes are delivered from aircraft such as blimps, balloons, fighter aircraft, attack aircraft, bombers, attack helicopters, and drones. The official definition includes all sorts of targets, including enemy air targets, but in popular usage the term is usually narrowed to a tactical (small-scale) attack on a ground or naval objective as opposed to a larger, more general attack such as carpet bombing. Weapons used in an airstrike can range from direct-fire aircraft-mounted cannons and machine guns, rockets and air-to-surface missiles, to various types of aerial bombs, glide bombs, cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, and even directed-energy weapons such as laser weapons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aerial warfare</span> Military combat involving aircraft

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A live fire exercise (LFX) is a military exercise in which live ammunition and ordnance is used, as opposed to blanks or dummies. The term can also be found in non-military usage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spice (bomb)</span> Israeli precision-guided bomb kit

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guided bomb</span> Bomb controllable from an external device

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kh-25</span> Tactical air-to-surface missile

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zuni (rocket)</span> Air-to-surface rocket

The Zuni 5-inch Folding-Fin Aircraft Rocket (FFAR), or simply Zuni, is a 5.0 in (127 mm) unguided rocket developed by the Hunter-Douglas Division of Bridgeport Brass Company and deployed by the United States Armed Forces, and the French Air Force. The rocket was developed for both air-to-air and air-to-ground operations. It can be used to carry various types of warheads, including chaff for countermeasures. It is usually fired from the LAU-10 rocket pod holding four rockets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System</span> American 2.75-inch precision guided rocket

The AGR-20 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) is a design conversion of Hydra 70 unguided rockets with a laser guidance kit to turn them into precision-guided munitions (PGMs). APKWS is approximately one-third the cost and one-third the weight of the current inventory of laser-guided weapons, has a lower yield more suitable for avoiding collateral damage, and takes one quarter of the time for ordnance personnel to load and unload.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LS PGB</span> Chinese precision bombs

Lei Shi, abbreviated as LS, is a series of precision-guided munitions (PGM) developed by Luoyang Optoelectro Technology Development Center (LOTDC), a subsidiary of Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). Leishi is a type of guidance kit that can modify existing unguided bomb into guided standoff munition. These maneuverable guided bombs are similar in roles to the American Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) kit but with longer ranges.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Precision-guided munition</span> "Smart bombs", used to strike targets precisely

A precision-guided munition (PGM), also called a smart weapon, smart munition, or smart bomb, is a guided munition intended to hit a specific target, to minimize collateral damage and increase lethality against intended targets. During the Persian Gulf War guided munitions accounted for only 9% of weapons fired, but accounted for 75% of all successful hits. Despite guided weapons generally being used on more difficult targets, they were still 35 times more likely to destroy their targets per weapon dropped.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rocket (weapon)</span> Weapon utilizing a self-contained rocket engine to propel itself to its target

In military terminology, a rocket is a self-propelled, unguided or guided, weapon-system powered by a rocket engine. Though used primarily as medium- and long-range artillery systems, historically rockets have also seen considerable use as air-to-surface weapons, some use as air-to-air weapons, and even as surface-to-air devices. Examples of modern surface-to-surface rocket systems include the Soviet BM-27 Uragan and the American M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martlet (missile)</span> Laser-guided battlefield missile (ASM, AAM, SAM and SSM)

Martlet or the Lightweight Multirole Missile(LMM) is a lightweight air-to-surface, air-to-air, surface-to-air, and surface-to-surface missile developed by Thales Air Defence for the United Kingdom. It is named after a mythical bird from English heraldry that never roosts, the Martlet.

The High Speed Low Drag (HSLD) bomb is a family of new generation short range air-dropped precision-guided munition that is currently being developed by India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). This general-purpose bomb is made for the Indian Air Force (IAF) and can be used against the destruction of strategic high value enemy infrastructure from stand-off distances. HSLD is comparable to Mark 80 series of bombs used by United States Air Force (USAF).

References

  1. "Factsheets : Fairchild AU-23A". Nationalmuseum.af.mil. Archived from the original on 2014-01-05. Retrieved 2013-11-16.
  2. De-classified summary of conference at UK Joint Services Command and Staff College reported in Aerospace International (magazine) March 2011 page 24
  3. "Guest Editor's Introduction: Homing Missile Guidance and Control" (PDF). jhuapl.edu.
  4. "Laser-Guided Bombs - Building LGB Capability". www.sps-aviation.com. Retrieved 2024-11-16.
  5. 1 2 "Precision-guided munitions". www.baesystems.com. Retrieved 2024-11-16.