بلو-109 (قنبلة)

BLU-109
BLU-109 aboard F-15E.jpg
A BLU-109 aboard an F-15E Strike Eagle configured as a JDAM
النوعFree-fall penetration bomb (guided when equipped as JDAM or Paveway)
مكان الأصلUnited States
تاريخ الخدمة
يستخدمهUnited States Air Force
المواصفات
الوزن2,000 lb (910 kg)
الطول7 ft 11 in (2.41 m)
القطر14.6 in (370 mm)

الحشوةTritonal[1]
وزن الحشوة550 lb (250 kg)[1]
A BLU-109 aboard a General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon configured as a JDAM
F-16I (Israeli Air Force) with BLU-109 forged steel point tip, and a BLU109 JDAM, 2,000 lb (910 kg) bunker buster penetration bomb

The BLU-109/B is a hardened bunker buster penetration bomb used by the United States Air Force (BLU is an acronym for Bomb Live Unit). As with other "bunker busters", it is intended to penetrate concrete shelters and other hardened structures before exploding. In addition to the US, it is part of the armament of the air forces of Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Israel, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom and United Arab Emirates.[2]

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Design

The BLU-109/B has a steel casing about 1 inch (25 mm) thick. Its warhead is filled with 550 pounds (250 kg) of Tritonal.[3] It has a mechanical-electrical delayed-action FMU-143 tail-fuze.[4] The BLU-109 entered service in 1985. It is also used as the warhead of some marks of the GBU-15 electro-optically guided bomb, the GBU-24 Paveway III and GBU-27 Paveway III laser-guided bombs, as well as the GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM)[5] and AGM-130 air-to-surface missile.


Variants

The BLU-118 is reportedly a thermobaric explosive filler variation on the BLU-109 casing and basic bomb design.[6] It contains PBXIH-135, a traditional explosive.[7]

In 2015 General Dynamics started a $7.2 million development of a version called HAMMER, which is intended to destroy chemical and biological substances by spreading dozens of Kinetic Fireballs Incendiaries (KFI) (not explosions) inside a bunker. The KFIs have evolved out of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program by Exquadrum, Inc. of Adelanto, California.[8]

Operators

تكلفة BLU-109 باهظة ويمكن ملؤها بمكونين كيميائيين اختياريين. كما أن قطرها الواسع وقوتها الاختراقية تجعلها السلاح الأكثر رعبًا على الإطلاق. وتُصدر على نطاق ضيق، ولا تتم الموافقة عليه تلقائيًا على ارسالها للحلفاء وأعضاء الناتو عندما يتم طلبه. وغالبا ما يرفض البنتاغون طلبات الحصول عليها.
تكلفة BLU-109 باهظة ويمكن ملؤها بمكونين كيميائيين اختياريين. كما أن قطرها الواسع وقوتها الاختراقية تجعلها السلاح الأكثر رعبًا على الإطلاق. وتُصدر على نطاق ضيق، ولا تتم الموافقة عليه تلقائيًا على ارسالها للحلفاء وأعضاء الناتو عندما يتم طلبه. وغالبا ما يرفض البنتاغون طلبات الحصول عليها.

The BLU-109 has been sold to key US allies including South Korea, Israel, Greece, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Pakistan and Turkey[9][10]

See also

References

  1. ^ أ ب BLU-109/B fact sheet - Hill AFB, USAF
  2. ^ Forecast International (2004). BLU-116/B Archived 10 مارس 2012 at the Wayback Machine, page 4. Accessed 12 May 2011.
  3. ^ J. Hart, Russell (15 فبراير 2012). "Defeating Hard And Deeply Buried Targets in 2035" (PDF). Defense Technical Information Center (.mil). p. 7-8. Retrieved 5 يوليو 2024.
  4. ^ "Gulf War - Air Power Survey, Volume IV - Weapons, Tactics, and Training" (PDF). U.S. Department of Defense. p. 71. Retrieved 4 يوليو 2024.
  5. ^ Chow Seng, Chor (ديسمبر 2008). "A Business Case Analysis of the Hard Target Void Sensing Fuze (HTVSF) Joint Cap Capability Technology Demonstration (JCTD)" (PDF). Defense Technical Information Center (.mil) | Naval Postgraduate School. p. 1. Retrieved 5 يوليو 2024.
  6. ^ "BLU-118/B Thermobaric Weapon". GlobalSecurity.org. Archived from the original on 27 يوليو 2019. Retrieved 6 ديسمبر 2013.
  7. ^ Little, Robert. "A race to get a new bomb for cave war". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on 7 أبريل 2014. Retrieved 5 أبريل 2014.
  8. ^ Drew, James. "Pentagon taps General Dynamics to test fireball bunker bomb Archived 19 فبراير 2018 at the Wayback Machine"
  9. ^ The Most “Political” of All Bombs. http://www.quatrostrategies.com/2016/02/29/the-most-political-of-all-bombs/ Archived 6 سبتمبر 2018 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ أ ب "BLU-109/B (Bomb Live Unit)". www.haf.gr.

External links