DRDO Glide Bombs

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DRDO Glide Bomb
Gaurav glide bomb.jpg
Gaurav glide bomb during trials
TypeSmart Glide bomb[1][2]
Place of originIndia
Production history
DesignerResearch Centre Imarat (DRDO)[1][2]
Designed2014–present
ManufacturerMunitions India Limited
VariantsGaurav (Winged), Gautham (Non-Winged)
Specifications
MassGaurav - 1,000 kg (2,200 lb)[1][2]
Gautham - 550 kg (1,210 lb)
Length4.0 m
Diameter0.62 m
WarheadCL-20 (fragmentation, cluster munition)
Detonation
mechanism
Contact and proximity fuze
Operational
range
Gaurav (Winged) - 100 kilometres (54 nmi)
Gautham (Non-winged) -30 kilometres (16 nmi)[1][2]
Flight altitude10 km
Guidance
system
Mid-course: Inertial navigation system with GPS/NavIC satellite guidance
Terminal: Semi-active laser homing[3]
Launch
platform
Sukhoi Su-30 MKI[4]

The DRDO Glide Bomb is a product of the Defence Research and Development Organisation to deploy a standardised medium range precision guided weapon, especially for engagement of targets from outside the range of standard anti-aircraft defenses, thereby increasing aircraft survivability and minimising friendly losses.

Development[]

The bomb was designed by the nodal Laboratory Research Centre Imarat[5] in Hyderabad with the help of Defence Avionics Research Establishment (DARE) in Bengaluru, Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory (TBRL) in Chandigarh and Armaments Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) in Pune.[1][2] The team designed the bomb specially for the Indian Air Force to fill their requirement of precision guided weapons.[1][2]

Trials[]

The DRDO and the Indian Air Force (IAF) successfully tested a 1,000 kg glide bomb on 19 December 2014 that covered a range of 100 km guided through its on-board navigation system. The flight path is of the glide bomb was monitored by DRDO radars and electro-optic systems situated at Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur.[6] On 17 August 2018, the IAF and DRDO did a covert successful trial of Garuthmaa and Garudaa at Pokhran firing range, Jaisalmer.[7]

Long Range Bomb - Gaurav[]

DRDO and IAF successfully tested Long Range Bomb (LRB) on 29 October 2021 from Su-30MKI at Balasore, Odisha. The bomb was released from 10 km altitude which successfully hit a sea based target using laser guidance. It is a 1,000 kg bomb which DRDO developed as an alternative to Spice 2000.[8] LRB is part of a family of newly developed precision guided munition with a range of 50 km to 150 km in range.[9]

Variants[]

There are two variants of the DRDO Glide Bomb:

  • Gaurav - The winged version. It has a range of up to 100 km.[1][4]
  • Gautham - The non-winged version. It has a range of 30 km and in future the range will be enhanced to 100 km. It has onboard navigation and guidance systems.[1]

Operators[]

 India

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "DRDO successfully tests 'glide bombs' in Pokhran". Times of India. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "India Successfully Tests One Ton Glide Bomb. Why That's Important". NDTV. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  3. ^ Gupta, Shishir (29 October 2021). "India's 1st long-range 1 ton guided bomb test-fired, hits target 100 km away". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  4. ^ a b "India tests glide bomb". The Hindu. 20 December 2014. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  5. ^ "DRDO Tests 1000 Kg Class Indigenous Guided Glide Bomb". pib.nic.in. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
  6. ^ "1,000-Kg Guided Glide Bomb Tested by DRDO". Indian Defence Review. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  7. ^ "2 smart bombs by DRDO pass test". Deccan Chronicle. 10 October 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
  8. ^ Gupta, Shishir (29 October 2021). "India's 1st long-range 1 ton guided bomb test-fired, hits target 100 km away". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  9. ^ "DRDO, Air Force successfully test India's first indigenously developed long-range bomb". The Indian Express. 30 October 2021. Retrieved 30 October 2021.

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