Unguided bomb

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An unguided 500 lb (230 kg) Mark 82 bomb with no retarder Mark82Bomb.JPEG
An unguided 500 lb (230 kg) Mark 82 bomb with no retarder

An unguided bomb, also known as a free-fall bomb, gravity bomb, dumb bomb, or iron bomb, is an aircraft-dropped bomb (conventional or nuclear) that does not contain a guidance system and hence simply follows a ballistic trajectory. It includes all aircraft bombs in general service until the latter half of World War II, and the vast majority until the late 1980s, which were known simply as "bombs".

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Then, with the dramatically increased use of precision-guided munitions, a retronym was needed to separate "smart bombs" from free-fall bombs. "Dumb bomb" was used for a time, but many military circles felt it sounded trite, and eventually "gravity bomb" gained popularity.

Bomb casings for unguided bombs are typically aerodynamic in shape, often with fins at the tail section, which reduce drag and increase stability after release, both of which serve to improve accuracy and consistency of trajectory.

Unguided bombs typically use a contact fuze for detonation upon impact, or some milliseconds after if a penetration effect is required. Alternatives include a fuze with an altimeter to cause an air burst at the desired altitude, and a proximity fuze to cause an air burst at a specific distance from the ground or other target.

Retarded bomb

An F-111 dropping Mark 82 bombs with ballute-type retardation systems (Mk82AIR / BSU49B) F-111F dropping high-drag bombs.jpg
An F-111 dropping Mark 82 bombs with ballute-type retardation systems (Mk82AIR / BSU49B)
Mk. 82 bomb with a Snake Eye tail retarding device - this photograph shows an unfuzed, museum display Mk 82 with its usual combat paint scheme. For display purposes, the optional high-drag Snake Eye tailfin set used for low-altitude release is shown. Mk. 81 250-lb and Mk. 82 Snakeye I 500-lb.jpg
Mk. 82 bomb with a Snake Eye tail retarding device – this photograph shows an unfuzed, museum display Mk 82 with its usual combat paint scheme. For display purposes, the optional high-drag Snake Eye tailfin set used for low-altitude release is shown.

The retarded bomb uses a mechanical method of creating increased aerodynamic drag, such as a parachute, ballute, or drag-inducing petals. These deploy after the ordnance is released, slowing its fall and abbreviating its forward trajectory, giving the aircraft time to get clear of the blast zone when bombing from low altitudes or with nuclear ordnance. However, these bombs are less accurate than conventional free-fall bombs. [1] Generally the high-drag tail replaces the low-drag so that the same bomb can be configured for either mode of attack during weapons preparation. High-drag bombs can also be dropped in low-drag mode if the pilot selects this option in the aircraft's weapon system, and will function exactly like a low-drag weapon.

See also

Related Research Articles

The Mark 82 is a 500-pound (230 kg) unguided, low-drag general-purpose bomb, part of the United States Mark 80 series. The explosive filling is usually tritonal, though other compositions have sometimes been used.

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

A laser-guided bomb (LGB) is a guided bomb that uses semi-active laser guidance to strike a designated target with greater accuracy than an unguided bomb. First developed by the United States during the Vietnam War, laser-guided bombs quickly proved their value in precision strikes of difficult point targets. These weapons use on-board electronics to track targets that are designated by laser, typically in the infrared spectrum, and adjust their glide path to accurately strike the target. Since the weapon is tracking a light signature, not the object itself, the target must be illuminated from a separate source, either by ground forces, by a pod on the attacking aircraft, or by a separate support aircraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fritz X</span> WWII radio guided bomb developed by Nazi Germany

Fritz X was the most common name for a German guided anti-ship glide bomb used during World War II. Fritz X was the world's first precision guided weapon deployed in combat and the first to sink a ship in combat. Fritz X was a nickname used both by Allied and Luftwaffe personnel. Alternative names include Ruhrstahl SD 1400 X, Kramer X-1, PC 1400X or FX 1400.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shell (projectile)</span> Payload-carrying projectile

A shell, in a military context, is a projectile whose payload contains an explosive, incendiary, or other chemical filling. Originally it was called a bombshell, but "shell" has come to be unambiguous in a military context. A shell can hold a tracer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Beard (nuclear weapon)</span> British tactical nuclear weapon

Red Beard was the first British tactical nuclear weapon. It was carried by Royal Air Force (RAF) English Electric Canberra medium bombers and the V bomber force and by Supermarine Scimitars, de Havilland Sea Vixens, and Blackburn Buccaneers of the Royal Navy's (RN) Fleet Air Arm (FAA). Developed to Operational Requirement OR.1127, it was introduced in 1961, entered service in 1962. It was replaced by the WE.177 in the early 1970s and was withdrawn from service in 1971.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">B61 nuclear bomb</span> Nuclear bomb

The B61 nuclear bomb is the primary thermonuclear gravity bomb in the United States Enduring Stockpile following the end of the Cold War. It is a low-to-intermediate yield strategic and tactical nuclear weapon featuring a two-stage radiation implosion design.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">General-purpose bomb</span> Aerial bomb used for multiple purposes

A general-purpose bomb is an air-dropped bomb intended as a compromise between blast damage, penetration, and fragmentation in explosive effect. They are designed to be effective against enemy troops, vehicles, and buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toss bombing</span> Bombing technique

Toss bombing is a method of bombing where the attacking aircraft pulls upward when releasing its bomb load, giving the bomb additional time of flight by starting its ballistic path with an upward vector.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M117 bomb</span> Free-fall demolition bomb

The M117 is an air-dropped demolition bomb used by United States military forces. The weapon dates back to the Korean War of the early 1950s. Although it has a nominal weight of 750 pounds (340 kg) its actual weight, depending on fuze and retardation options, can be around 820 pounds (372 kg). The bomb's explosive content is typically 386 pounds (175 kg) of Tritonal or 377 pounds (171 kg) of Minol in the case of the M117A1E2 due to their higher density and detonation velocity compared to TNT. Demolition bombs rely on time delayed fuzes which allow the bomb to burrow into a building or other structure before detonating. The M117 can be configured with a conical low-drag tail for medium and high altitude deliveries or a high-drag tail fin for low-altitude drops, delaying the bombs hitting their targets ensuring bombers are out of the blast zone before detonation. The M117 was the basis for the BOLT-117, the world's first laser-guided bomb.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">B28 nuclear bomb</span> Nuclear bomb

The B28, originally Mark 28, was a thermonuclear bomb carried by U.S. tactical fighter bombers, attack aircraft and bomber aircraft. From 1962 to 1972 under the NATO nuclear weapons sharing program, American B28s also equipped six Europe-based Canadian CF-104 squadrons known as the RCAF Nuclear Strike Force. It was also supplied for delivery by UK-based Royal Air Force Valiant and Canberra aircraft assigned to NATO under the command of SACEUR. In addition, certain U.S. Navy carrier based attack aircraft such as the A3D Skywarrior, A4D Skyhawk, and A3J Vigilante were equipped to carry the B28.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">B41 nuclear bomb</span> American high-yield thermonuclear weapon

The B-41 was a thermonuclear weapon deployed by the United States Strategic Air Command in the early 1960s. It was the most powerful nuclear bomb ever developed by the United States, with a maximum yield of 25 megatons of TNT. A top secret document, states “The US has stockpiled bombs of 9 MT and 23 MT...” which would likely be referring to the B-41's actual yield(s). The B-41 was the only three-stage thermonuclear weapon fielded by the U.S.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laydown delivery</span> Nuclear bomb delivery mode

Laydown delivery is a mode of delivery found in some nuclear gravity bombs: the bomb's descent to the target is slowed by parachute so that it lands on the ground without detonating. The bomb then detonates by timer some time later. Laydown delivery requires the weapon to be reinforced so that it can survive the force of impact.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CBU-100 Cluster Bomb</span> American cluster bomb

The Mk 20 Rockeye II, CBU-99 Rockeye II, and CBU-100 Rockeye II comprise an American cluster bomb family which are employed primarily in an anti-tank mode against armored vehicles.

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

A guided bomb is a precision-guided munition designed to achieve a smaller circular error probable (CEP).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark 39 nuclear bomb</span> Thermonuclear warhead

The Mark 39 nuclear bomb and W39 nuclear warhead were versions of an American thermonuclear weapon, which were in service from 1957 to 1966.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombsight</span> Aircraft system for aiming bombs

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aerial bomb</span> Explosive or incendiary weapon intended to travel through the air on a predictable trajectory

An aerial bomb is a type of explosive or incendiary weapon intended to travel through the air on a predictable trajectory. Engineers usually develop such bombs to be dropped from an aircraft.

<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.

A contact fuze, impact fuze, percussion fuze or direct-action (D.A.) fuze (UK) is the fuze that is placed in the nose of a bomb or shell so that it will detonate on contact with a hard surface.

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. "Evaluation of a Ballute Retarder System for the Mk 82 Bomb" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 18, 2016.