A Slick portrayal of Boeing and Saab’s Ground -Launched Small Diameter Bomb
Published February 1, 2024
The Pentagon is poised to begin equipping Ukraine with a long-range precision bomb that’s so new it hasn’t even hit the American arsenal yet, Politico reports. The first shipment could arrive as early as Wednesday.
The precision-guided Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB), a joint project of Boeing and Saab, comprises a 250-pound explosive that’s attached to a rocket motor and fired from ground launchers. From a range of about 90 miles, it’s supposedly accurate within a meter. The US military has an air-launched version, but not this new ground-launched one, six of which were fired in a final, pre-ship test conducted at Florida’s Eglin Air Force Base on Jan. 16, according to a Reuters source.
The weapon has one feature that’s particularly attractive: since it’s already “paid for,” the Pentagon can ship it to Ukraine without waiting for additional Ukraine war-funding legislation that’s been held up in Congress for months. That’s especially important at a time when Ukraine’s stockpile of 100-mile Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) is running low. The US has put off requests to supply ATACMS to Ukraine — partly out of concern that doing so would be seen as a Western escalation — only to later supply them anyway, with the missiles making their debut in October.
Politico reports that Ukraine will receive its first GLSDB surface-to-surface missiles from the U.S. tomorrow.
The my are very accurate and have a range of 160 km, making it possible for Ukraine to strike far behind Russian lines
Video of how they work pic.twitter.com/NeLvtHptdo
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) January 30, 2024
Shipping the GLSDB into the Ukraine war could pay dividends for Boeing and Saab in other ways — it’s an opportunity to showcase the new weapon in a hot war. Last year, Boeing pitched the Pentagon on an “expedited nine-month option” for delivering the new weapon — which means allowing an exception to standard scrutiny that’s intended to ensure taxpayers are getting a reasonably good deal. The Pentagon, of course, was all too happy to issue such a waiver.
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SOURCE: www.zerohedge.com
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A Boeing logo is seen at the 54th International Paris Airshow at Le Bourget Airport near Paris, France, June 18, 2023. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier Acquire Licensing Rights
Published January 31, 2024
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SOURCE: www.reuters.com
RELATED: New US-made longer-range bomb expected to arrive as soon as Wednesday in Ukraine
The Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb doesn’t even exist in the U.S. inventory.
Airman 1st Class Jonathan Catalano handles a rack of inert small diameter bombs during readiness training at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Feb. 9, 2018. | U.S. Air Force photo by Alejandro Peña
Published February 1, 2024
The Pentagon has successfully tested a new long-range precision bomb for Ukraine that is expected to arrive on the battlefield as soon as Wednesday, according to two U.S. officials and two other people with knowledge of the talks.
Ukraine will receive its first batch of Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bombs, a brand new long-range weapon made by Boeing that even the U.S. doesn’t have in its inventory, according to the four people, all of whom were granted anonymity to discuss matters ahead of an announcement.
The new bomb, which can travel about 90 miles, is expected to be “a significant capability for Ukraine,” said one of the U.S. officials.
“It gives them a deeper strike capability they haven’t had, it complements their long-range fire arsenal,” the U.S. official said. “It’s just an extra arrow in the quiver that’s gonna allow them to do more.”
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SOURCE: www.politico.com
