Posted on 10/08/2005 5:13:52 PM PDT by strategofr
One of the strangest, and most useful, bombs employed in Iraq has been the concrete filled JDAM. Why deliver a 500 pound bomb filled with concrete instead of explosives? You do that if you want to do some damage, but not a lot. Concrete JDAMs were first used in the 1990s to destroy anti-aircraft guns, radars and missiles that Saddam Hussein placed in residential areas.
He believed that the Americans would not attack these weapons, for fear of hurting nearby civilians. But it turned out that a laser, or satellite (JDAM) guided concrete smart bomb could take out the air-defense weapons without hurting nearby civilians. The concrete bombs come in various sizes (500, 1,000 and 2,000 pounds), but the new 500 pound JDAM has become a favorite when a concrete version is required.
Recently, for example, two small bridges near the Syrian border were seen being used by terrorists to bring in people and weapons. There was no need to completely destroy the bridges (which might take months, or longer, to replace), because the terrorists were slowly being chased from the area. But a concrete bomb on each bridge damaged the structures enough so that they could not be used, but not so much that they could not be repaired in a week or two.
Concrete bombs are still used against terrorist targets in residential areas, where the bomb can reach the terrorists before police or ground troops can. It’s all a case of a seemingly off-the-wall weapon idea being, not a joke, but actually quite useful.
did anyone say this will cement our Iraqi border strategy.
I recognize that photo. That is NOT a concrete filled JDAM, or any other sort of guided bomb. It's full up 500 pound Paveway Laser Guided bomb. The next photo in the sequence shows the bomb exploding. A later one shows what's left of the truck, the rear axle, less wheels and brakes. :)
Originally produced by Texas Instruments in Sherman, Dallas and Lewisville Texas, they are now produced in Tuscon by RatCo, er Raytheon, which bought TI's defense unit in 1998 or so.
The *Rodham Clinton administration bombed innocent people? How come we don't hear much about this?
True, but one that will hit what it's lobbed at, most every time.
Explosives aside, I would really hate to be sittin back and a 500, 1000, or 2000 lbs of concrete land near by. Some of you math whizzes out there...what is the pull of gravity? How fast would this bomb be going at ground zero?? Then, what would be the force of impact(in pounds)???
Probably not. A BUFF is overkill if you only need two to four bombs on a particular target. Heck an F-16 or F/A-18 can do that job. If you need a few more, send in an F-15E.
My point exactly!!
I saw a video of one of these cement bomb hitting an Iraqi tank that was hiding partially under a bridge. No explosion but the impact darn near knocked the tank out from under the bridge, and split it open like a can of corn!!!!
“Ham” bombs kick ass. The smoldering gelatin burns like napalm.
"Pardon my ignorance, but can anyone tell me what happens on impact with a concrete bomb? They don't explode, so what do they do? Just shatter like a big rock?"
Honestly, not much... a 500 pounder is about 16" in diameter and a 2000 pounder is about 24" diam (my guess from eyeballing them on a preflight). If it hits dirt at a high impact angle it will bore a 16" to 24" hole for a loooong way down into the earth. I have heard stories of inerts (concrete filled bombs) going over a 100' down into non-rocky dirt. However, if it hits concrete or a vehicle it can cause a small pattern of shrapnel as its passing through (converting vertical velocity into horizontal velocity imparted to the fragments). You basically have to hit what you are trying to kill. If its a person, you would have to physically touch him with the bomb as it went by. Most of the time they are dropped from miles away, so trying to hit something as small as a person is more a matter of luck. A vehicle is easier obviously. Now if the bomb hits at an angle (versus straight down) it can "broach", which means it penetrates a few feet into the dirt and then skips back up through the dirt and starts tumbling and bouncing through the air and off the ground for MILES!!!!! I've done it and seen it, and its impressive!
Depending on impact angle, about 600-1000 feet per second.... Don't know about the pounds calculations though.
The heck with Acme ... let's go with Lowes or Home Depot on the side and start running this war at a profit!
USAF, USMC, and USN aircraft got shot at EVERY FRICKIN' DAY for 9 years and the media never reported it. This was during Operation Southern Watch and Operation Northern Watch. Then we would blow the sh?? out of the poor schmucks who had the choice of shooting at us or getting pushed up against a wall and shot (on Saddams orders)by their own officers if they didn't shoot at us. Hell of an Army to be in, eh?
"Maybe it's just too many years working Austin Bay and Al Nofi?"
over my head. don't know him that well.
Nope, it's a Super Guppy, used to transport out-sized, but not especially heavy, cargo. Often fuselage sections for large aircraft. But that particular one appears to be the NASA owned Super Guppy
IIRC, Airbus has a jet airliner converted to the Guppy configuration. However that one, and all the US versions, started life as a Boeing Stratocruiser (or possibly a KC-97, which was the earlier military version of the same airframe.) The radial piston engines have been swapped for turbo-props, and of course the main lobe's diameter has been grossly increased.
I actually rode in a C-97 once. It had been the command post bird for CincSAC General Curtis LeMay in an earlier life. The -97 and the Stratocruiser were in essence B-29s with a larger diameter fuselage. Wing, landing gear, wheels, and even controls and radios were the same as the old B-29 from late WW-II. I flew in the -97 in 1971.
Thanks for the info. It's still one of the strangest looking planes I've ever seen. These days with photoshop, it's sometimes hard to tell what's real and the work of a good computer geek. My kids have done some amazing stuff with photoshop.
Isn't this the technology we used while developing the "bunker buster" bombs in GF1?
Seems like I remember reading that we took 105 howitzer barrels and filled the ends with concrete followed by high explosives with a time delay fuse. Suckers would punch deep through the rock before detonating.
Is my recollection correct?
Cool.
say 800 fps using your figures... A ton moving this fast and then having to move something out of it's way... All I can say is... don't be there!!
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