bombs

The U.S. Air Force is seeking options for a new unpowered 500-pound air-launched glide bomb as part of a new ‘spiral’ to its Extended Range Attack Munition (ERAM) program. The service has already been acquiring two different lower-cost jet-powered cruise missiles under ERAM, including batches of these munitions for Ukraine. Adding glide bombs to the mix could create additional streams of even cheaper weapons that still offer valuable extended reach.

The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center’s Stand-In Strike division (AFLCMC/EBI) put out a request for information (RFI) for what it is currently calling Extended Range Attack Munition Glide (ERAM Glide) on Monday. AFLCMC/EBI also put out a separate RFI for additional powered ERAM options.

For ERAM Glide, a “500lb class weapon desired, with the equivalent warhead with approximately 105lbs of explosive and associated fuzes,” according to the contracting notice. The warhead has to be “capable of blast / frag / and limited penetration effects.”

For navigation, proposed munitions have to use “M-Code GPS with a CRPA [Controlled Reception Pattern Antenna] antenna capable of operating in a GPS degraded environment,” the notice adds. It does not call for any particular form of guidance in the terminal phase.

However, ERAM Glide munitions will need to have an accuracy of “CEP [Circular Error Probable] 50 w/in 10m both in non-EMI (Electromagnetic Interference) and high EMI environments (includes GPS degraded).” This means they hit, on average, within 10 meters, or approximately 33 feet, of the specified impact point at least 50 percent of the time. This also happens to be the stated accuracy requirement in the original ERAM RFI put out back in 2024.

The ERAM Glide contracting notice notably does not include a range target, but does specify “glide ratio of at least 10:1, and >15:1.” When it comes to unpowered glide munitions, range is especially dependent on the speed and altitude of the launch platform. Tactics like toss bombing can also help extend the reach of glide munitions even when the launching aircraft starts at a lower altitude.

The Air Force is also looking for munition designs that are already at a high level of developmental and production maturity for ERAM Glide.

There are potentially relevant munitions in production today in the United States. A prime example is Boeing’s Joint Direct Attack Munition-Extended Range (JDAM-ER). The JDAM-ER is really more of a kit that turns various types of unguided bombs into the ‘warheads’ for the resulting precision-guided munitions. JDAM-ER builds on the basic JDAM concept by adding a pop-out wing kit that allows the weapons to glide out to a maximum range of around 45 miles (72.4 kilometers) depending on the aforementioned launch factors. A standard JDAM can also glide, but only for around 15 miles (24 kilometers) at most, according to the Air Force. JDAM-ER kits are available in 500-, 1,000-, and 2,000-pound-class flavors.

DST | The Joint Direct Attack Munition – Extended Range (JDAM-ER) | Andrew Snowden

There are other glide bomb options on the open market in the U.S. and elsewhere globally today, as well. This includes the SPICE family from Israel’s Rafael and the French AASM 250 Hammer, among others. However, many of them are smaller than the 500-pound-class weapons the Air Force is seeking for ERAM Glide.

For ERAM Glide, prospective vendors might also put forward unpowered derivatives of lower-cost cruise missiles. Eliminating the need for an engine and fuel to power it could free up additional space and weight for larger warheads or other payloads, or just lower overall weight. Reduced weight could, in turn, translate to extended glide range. Developing an unpowered variation of an existing design could also offer sustainment and manufacturing benefits, as well as reduce unit costs. There might even be a possibility for a modular design that can be readily configured for powered or unpowered use.

As already mentioned, the Air Force is already acquiring two lower-cost cruise missile designs through ERAM. These are the Rusty Dagger from Zone 5 Technologies (now a subsidiary of Norwegian defense company Kongsberg) and CoAspire’s Rapidly Adaptable Affordable Cruise Missile (RAACM). Zone 5 and CoAspire are already developing extended-range variants and derivatives of their respective designs for air- and surface-launched applications through two other U.S. military programs called Low-Cost Containerized Missile (LCCM) and Consolidated Affordable Ordnance System (CHAOS).

ERAM, as well as CHAOS, are also heavily focused on providing lower-cost extended-range strike options to allies and partners. Ukraine was notably the first known recipient of munitions through ERAM. At the same time, the ERAM effort, and its subsequent spirals, have also been feeding into the Family of Affordable Mass Missiles (FAMM) program for the U.S. Air Force’s own use. ERAM Glide could similarly help provide additional munition streams for the U.S. military, as well as for export.

Overall, the broadening of the ERAM program to include ERAM Glide speaks to growing demand within the U.S. military, and elsewhere globally, for enlarged and more diversified supply chains for munitions. The Air Force alone plans to acquire 28,000 lower-cost cruise missiles in multiple different configurations over the next five years through FAMM.

The war with Iran, as well as other crises around the Middle East in recent years, together with the conflict in Ukraine, have made clear that just stockpiling munitions ahead of a major fight is not enough. There also have to be realistic mechanisms to readily replenish those inventories, and do so in a cost-effective manner.

There has already been an explosion globally in the development of lower-cost air- and surface-launched cruise missiles for programs like ERAM. Many of these designs also blur the line between traditional cruise missiles, longer-range one-way-attack drones, and decoys. As noted earlier, the Air Force has also put out a call for new powered ERAM designs as part of the latest spiral to the program.

As these trends continue to grow, the Air Force is now looking to expand the ERAM program to include both powered and unpowered munitions.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com

The United States has developed plans to strike Iran with the largest non-nuclear bomb in its military arsenal on Iran’s energy infrastructure and nuclear sites if President Donald Trump orders renewed combat operations, according to US officials cited by CNN.

Deploying the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb (MOAB), nicknamed the “mother of all bombs”, could significantly escalate the ongoing conflict at a time when fighting has lulled, experts say.

Concerns are also being raised, including within the Trump administration itself, over what such a move would even achieve. Officials familiar with military planning discussions told US news outlet CNN and Al Jazeera that deploying the MOAB would be unlikely to help the US achieve its stated strategic goals, including to destroy Iran’s nuclear capabilities.

Brussels-based military expert Elijah Magnier told Al Jazeera that using the MOAB would not even guarantee the destruction of Iran’s deeply buried underground nuclear installations and that such a strike would likely amount to little more than “political theatre”.

Here’s what we know:

What is the MOAB?

The GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb (MOAB) is a massive munition containing about 8,500kg (18,000 pounds or 8.5 tonnes) of high explosives. It weighs 9,800kg (21,605 pounds or nearly 10 tonnes) – about the same as four saloon cars – and is as long as a small yacht at just over 9 metres (about 30 feet).

The MOAB is typically deployed from the Lockheed C-130 Hercules cargo aircraft because it cannot fit in a stealth bomber.

The bomb, which was first manufactured between 2002 and 2003, has undergone 12 detonation tests.

Its name is a reference to former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s comments during the 1991 Gulf War when he invoked the “mother of all battles”.

The US has only deployed the MOAB once before – during its 2017 attacks on an Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) cave and tunnel complex in Afghanistan. Afghan authorities claimed that while 94 Islamic State-Khorasan Province (ISKP) fighters were killed in the blast, no civilians were hurt. However, there were unconfirmed, local reports of civilian casualties and many homes were destroyed.

What is the ‘mother of all bombs’?

The GBU-43/B, the US’s most powerful non-nuclear bomb, was used once, against Islamic State-Khorasan…

GBU-43/B

Pallet is deployed from rear cargo door of MC-130H or C-17aircraft.

1. Released from the aircraft.

2. Cradle separates; GPS and fins guide it.

3. H6 explosives detonate.

4. A powerful shockwave spreads.

5. Hot gases, smoke and debris rise in a mushroom cloud.

1 of 4

What kind of damage can it cause?

Designed to explode a few feet above the ground, the MOAB sends out lethal waves of fire when it detonates, blasting away buildings, cave openings and other hard-surface structures.

“Its purpose is to generate an exceptionally powerful blast across a surface area,” Magnier said.

Military expert Colonel Nidal Abu Zeid told Al Jazeera the bomb does not require impact in order to detonate and that its massive blast will destroy everything above ground within a 1km (0.6-mile) radius.

It is likely that the US would aim to use the high-explosive MOAB to completely destroy Iran’s ground-force positions above ground, and to reach its underground facilities, including Pickaxe Mountain, which Trump has previously threatened to attack, Abu Zeid said.

However, Magnier said the bomb’s radius and level of destruction would depend greatly on the terrain it is used within and how populated the area is. He added that it may not be particularly effective against targets buried deep underground.

Some of Iran’s nuclear sites which the US may wish to target, such as the Fordow complex and an under-construction site at the Pickaxe Mountain, are heavily fortified and deeply buried.

“Its large explosive charge can produce devastating blast effects against exposed personnel, equipment and vulnerable structures,” Magnier said. “The Afghanistan operation demonstrates its intended application against a cave-and-tunnel position; it does not demonstrate an ability to destroy every kind of underground installation.”

While its blast can reach underground, the MOAB is not especially designed to punch through deep concrete or mountain rock in the way that a “bunker buster” bomb is. The US military’s most powerful bunker buster is the GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator. Weighing about 30,000 pounds (13,600kg), including a 2,700kg (6,000 pound) warhead, this precision-guided bomb is made of high-strength steel and built to penetrate up to 200 feet (61 metres) underground before exploding.

Would the US really use an MOAB?

It already has done – in Afghanistan in 2017.

However, besides not being guaranteed to hit underground targets effectively, Magnier told Al Jazeera it could be difficult to deploy the necessary aircraft in the regions of Iran where nuclear sites are located. Stealth bombers which are better suited to this terrain are not able to carry this size of bomb.

Using the bomb could also destroy infrastructure without inducing Iran to make any concessions, he added, noting that its deployment would risk turning “a spectacular event” into one that ultimately delivers few political results for Washington.

“The question I would put to any commander advocating its use is straightforward: What will this weapon accomplish that another available weapon cannot, and how will that result advance an achievable political settlement?,” Magnier said.

“If the answer centres on the spectacle of the explosion, the proposal is stronger as political theatre than as military strategy,” he added.

CNN reported that Trump, in private discussions, has been seeking a “definitive” end to the war that will prove Washington has been undefeated.

How might Iran respond?

A MOAB strike would likely prompt a major reaction from Iran, experts say, warning that Tehran could even invade its neighbours who host US military assets in response.

Iranian security officials have for months made comments regarding a possible invasion of countries like Kuwait to capture US troops and force Washington to surrender.

In May, during a pause in hostilities, Kuwait alleged that sailors from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) infiltrated its Bubiyan Island, leading to an exchange of fire between Iranian and Kuwaiti forces. One Kuwaiti was injured and four Iranian soldiers were captured.

Iran denied that it had invaded the island and said the troops’ navigation system had malfunctioned.

On Tuesday, IRGC security adviser Mohammad Reza Naghdi warned that Iran could capture troops if Washington were to launch ground attacks, although military experts have long dismissed Trump’s earlier threats of an invasion due to Iran’s mountainous terrain.

“If the United States launches a ground attack, so many of its troops will be captured that it will be forced to raise the white flag,” he said.

Experts say Iran has been preparing for another round of war by stockpiling weapons, fortifying key nuclear and defence locations, and rallying its supporters.

In a television broadcast on Sunday, National Security Council chief Mohsen Rezaei threatened that Iran would attack regional digital infrastructure, including communication cables, data centres and artificial intelligence facilities in the United Arab Emirates and others, if American strikes resume.