Latest news with #BLU-109
NDTV
6 hours ago
- Politics
- NDTV
Ghost Of GBU-28: When US Bunker-Buster Bomb Shattered Saddam's Last Hope
The American B-2 bombers flew for 13,000 km, carrying the GBU-57, a bunker-buster capable of striking underground facilities, and struck Iran's nuclear facilities to "obliterate" the country's atomic weapons programme. Now, US President Donald Trump says a regime change in Tehran will "Make Iran Great Again"; however, his ministers have said 'Operation Midnight Hammer' was not aimed at a regime change. American air power has been deployed several times to "establish democracy" and fight terrorism in the Middle East. In 1990, when Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, the US launched Operation Desert Storm to fight the Iraqi forces. The air-land operation ended on February 28, 1991, but a day before the ceasefire, a bunker-buster bomb of the same class as GBU-57 was dropped from the air and is often credited with ending the first Gulf War. GBU-28 - The Earth Penetrator The 42-day aerial campaign launched by the US and the coalition forces obliterated Iraqi defences on the ground. Hell rained from the sky on Saddam's troops, forcing the dictator and his men to hide in concrete underground bunkers located several metres deep that could not be penetrated even by the BLU-109, a hardened bunker-buster used by the US since these bombs could not penetrate reinforced concrete beyond four to six feet. The Iraqi commanders continued to direct the troops from these 40 concrete bunkers, often located at least 50 feet underground in Baghdad alone. The ground troops did not have much success in targeting them, and the US Air Force called for a magic bomb to be made to strike deep. And within four weeks, the innovative American engineers developed GBU-28. From Concept to Combat The engineers at Lockheed Martin, the US Air Force, and the Eglin Air Force base in Florida proposed a solid casing for the bomb to ensure it would not be crushed on impact with the bunker's thick concrete slabs. A dense penetrator version of BLU-109 - when dropped from a very high altitude from the B-52 Stratofortress, could penetrate the bunker - was proposed along with a hypersonic vehicle that could use its kinetic energy to pierce the slabs. Time was running against the engineers, and it could have taken several months to develop. The Air Force proposed that the 8-inch barrels of the Army's M117 Howitzer could be the solution to the solid casing of the bomb because of weight and strength. The Watervalide Arsenal of the Army in New York was tasked to turn the howitzer barrels into bombs. The work on the bomb started on February 1, and an official go-ahead was given on February 14. It was decided by the Eglin base and Lockheed Martin engineers that the F-111 Aardvark would deliver the bomb, and its weight was reduced to approximately 4,000 kg to ensure it was ideal for the deep-strike fighter jet. Engineers at the air base worked a seven-day shift to deliver on time. The pellets of the bomb were being developed simultaneously, and the Lockheed engineers were working on the avionics suite of the F-111, and the nose of the BLU-109 had arrived to be used for the bomb. A report said at least 15 design changes were made to the bomb's specifications. The nose cone for GBU-28 was secured and carefully welded, with wing attachments being made to the body of the bomb. Within three days, from the go-no-go decision on February 13, 1991, to February 16, the engineers worked day and night to deliver, and the first bombs were ready for assembly and loaded onto the C-130 cargo planes of the US Air Force. The bomb casing arrived in Florida at the air base, and the process to fill the explosives began. Since the 13-foot casing of a bomb never came to the base, a hole was dug in the ground, and manually, engineers filled the casing with molten explosive in one bomb and concrete for a sled test in the other in a 37-hour-long process. The "dumb bombs" were fitted with a laser-guidance kit, and fins were attached to GBU-28's rear for aerodynamic stability. The bomb was ready for testing. On February 24, 1991, a GBU-28 was dropped from an F-111 in Nevada, and it penetrated the target at supersonic speed, burying itself at least 100 feet deep. Later, the second bomb was used for the sled test and fired against a 22-foot thick steel reinforced concrete slab. The two tests were successful, and GBU-28 was ready for combat. This was the first time a bomb moved from concept to combat in a short period, and with just two demonstrative tests before being used in action. It had a warhead weighing 4,400 pounds and an FMU-143 fuse - A type of high-velocity fuse mounted on bunker busters like the BLU-109 that can penetrate deep. It has a delayed-action tail-fuse which remains intact upon impact and gets activated after piercing the solid structure, causing delayed detonation and massive damage. February 27, 1991 The two GBU-28 bombs were airlifted and taken to Taif in Saudi Arabia onboard the C-141 Starlifter of the US Air Force. They were fitted on the Aardvark, and the mission was to hit the Al Taji airbase, which survived the GBU-27 strikes so far from F-117 Nighthawks. Though Saddam was not present in the bunkers at Al Taji, its location just southwest of Baghdad made it significant. Two F-111s with callsigns - 'Cardinal 7-1' and 'Cardinal 7-2', piloted by Lt Col Ken Combs and Maj Jerry Hust and Col David White and Capt Tommy Himes respectively, took off. 'Cardinal 7-1' and 'Cardinal 7-2' laser marked their targets. The first F-111 narrowly missed the target, directed the second aircraft, piloted by Col White, was directed to redirect and strike the primary target. They did not miss. The GBU-28 penetrated the bunker, and later, smoke from the vents of the structure confirmed an explosion deep within the ground. Only two GBU-28s were used throughout the war, and one successfully struck its target. A day later, Saddam's troops surrendered to the coalition forces, and the war was over. The bomb is often credited with instilling that fear among the Iraqi troops that their last haven is not safe anymore, though Iraqi troops had suffered extensive damage in the 40 days of the battle until GBU-28 was used. The bombs were later deployed in Yugoslavia, the Second Gulf War in 2003, and Afghanistan. Israel was the first country to purchase these bombs from the US in 2005 after it intended it strike Iranian nuclear facilities with these munitions. Trump And GBU-57 After yesterday's bombing, Trump claimed the GBU-57, a bomb of the same class as GBU-28, managed to inflict "monumental damage" to the Iranian nuclear facilities. "Obliteration is an accurate term!" he said, referring to the satellite images showing damaged sites in Iran. Satellite images of Fordow, taken and distributed by Maxar Technologies, raise questions. The experts, news agency Reuters spoke to, looked at satellite imagery from Maxar Technologies and noted "unusual activity" at Fordow on Thursday and Friday, before the US attack. A long line of vehicles, waiting outside the facility entrance, is seen, indicating movement of the stockpile of near weapons-grade highly enriched uranium out of Fordow before the strike. A senior Iranian source told Reuters that most of the near weapons-grade 60% highly enriched uranium had been moved to an undisclosed location before the US strike. The "regime change" demand followed soon after the US declared Operation Midnight Hammer a success. In 1991, a bunker-buster bomb shattered Saddam's last hope. Thirty-four years later, the US hopes to do the same in Iran, but taking one step at a time - It starts with the destruction of underground nuclear facilities. Iran has not responded to US strikes, but its missile attacks on Israel continued.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Unprecedented New View Of BLU-109 Bunker Buster Strike That Killed Hezbollah's Leadership
Closed-circuit television video has emerged offering a new very up-close and personal view of the large-scale and highly-coordinated strike on Hezbollah's command bunker in Dahieh, a southern Beirut suburb and a stronghold of the militant organization, on September 27th, 2024. GBU-31/B Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) bombs with BLU-109/B bunker-busting warheads were the primary weapon used for this attack that killed Hezbollah's leader Hassan Nasrallah, as well as other top officials. It has been reported that dozens of civilians were killed and hundreds more were wounded in the attack. The decapitation strike aimed at the large bunker buried beneath a residential area was one of the key operations that sent the Iranian-backed militant group far off kilter, allowing for Israel's air and ground operations to have a far greater effect than they would have otherwise while limiting Hezbollah's ability to respond in kind. The pager and walkie-talkie sabotage operation that preceded this strike was another. Hezbollah remains heavily degraded today with the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, a key ally outside of Tehran, being another massive blow that came months later. The video below shows what appears to be a normal day in Dahieh, with people moving about, including two motorcyclists that are shown in-frame. Then the bunker busters arrive. One is seen burrowing deep through the concrete roadway, narrowly missing one of the motorcyclists, followed by a massive subterranean explosion that 'lifts' the entire surrounding area. This is exactly the effect of a bunker buster like the BLU-109. The bomb's tough casing allows it to penetrate deep underground with its delayed fuzing detonating the warhead at a predetermined depth or even level of a reinforced compound. CCTV Footage was released today, from Israel's Precision-Airstrike against Hezbollah's Central Command Bunker in the Dahieh Suburb of Southern Beirut on September 27th, which resulting in the elimination of the Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah as well as several… — OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) February 7, 2025 The strikes that killed Nasrallah were the result of decades of Israeli intelligence efforts to infiltrate Hezbollah and being able to the movements of its reclusive leader, according to multiple subsequent reports. Israel's unprecedented sowing of pagers and other electronics containing small explosive charges into Hezbollah's supply chains had already underscored its deep penetration into the group. Israel's strike is known to have involved the use of many GBU-31/Bs with BLU-109/B warheads delivered by at least eight F-15Is. Pre-strike imagery of the F-15s shows eight of them loaded to the brim with seven BLU-109/B-equipped JDAMs each, for a total of 56 bombs for the strike. Other reports put the number at over 80 bombs. ویدیویی از بلند شدن جنگنده های F-15 نیروی هوایی اسراییل مجهز به بمب GBU-31 و هسته سنگرشکن BLU-109 با وزن 2000 پوند برای حمله به مقر حسن نصرالله در بیروت روز گذشته: — Awes spad (@awes_spad) September 28, 2024 It's unclear whether or not Israel has received any BLU-116/Bs, a 2,000-pound-class penetrator featuring various improvements over the BLU-109/B, including an advanced smart fuze and the ability to punch through nearly 12 feet of reinforced concrete. The development of another 2,000-pound-class penetrator, the BLU-137/B, as a replacement for the BLU-109/B also began at least a decade ago, but to what extent that weapon is even in U.S. military service currently is not clear. Just today, the U.S. government approved the potential sale to Israel of additional JDAM kits specifically for use with the BLU-109/B, as well as precision-guided bombs and related components. A BLU-109 "Bunker Buster" undergoing testing. The 25mm thick steel casing enables the bomb to penetrate 4-6 ft of reinforced concrete! As you can see, the BLU-109 goes through concrete like a hot knife through butter. Incredible weapon. #avgeeks #aviation #aviationdaily #USAF — Air Power (@RealAirPower1) April 29, 2023 Video taken of the Israeli strike from afar shows highly precise targeteering that aimed to defeat the bunker system totally in one barrage. Images that emerged after the strike show giant craters and other impact areas spaced to provide continuous effects across a subterranean area. Different fuzing could have been employed to take out multiple levels of the complex and/or to ensure areas where the depth of the target wasn't known still resulted in the desired level of destruction. Layering in multiple BLU-109/Bs atop each other, allowing them to 'dig' deeper than they could if used in a singular manner, is also likely to have been used as there are reports that the bunker was located as deep as 60 feet below the surface. Incredible footage from Lebanon during IDF airstrikes. Explosions underground as well. — Clash Report (@clashreport) September 27, 2024 A massive crater, reportedly caused by a bunker buster, where Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli airstrike on September 27 in Beirut's southern suburbs. The strike, carried out by Israeli F-15 'Ra'am' multirole fighter aircraft, is believed to have… — OSINTWarfare (@OSINTWarfare) September 29, 2024 Beirut now. — Clash Report (@clashreport) September 27, 2024 Regardless, the video is perhaps the most up-close view we have seen of the real-world effects of these weapons and their ability to reliably drill down through the soil and concrete to reach their intended target. Contact the author: Tyler@
