American company Boeing has signed a contract with Israel for production of 5,000 units of Small Diameter Bomb (GBU-39/B SDB) guided glide bombs. It’s reported that the new contract is not related to current combat operations against iran.
Delivery of the first batches of these guided bombs is scheduled only in 36 months, approximately March 2029. The new contract's value is estimated at $298 million. Bloomberg reports this, citing its own sources.
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Defense Express adds that thanks to available information about the number of contracted GBU-39/Bs and the contract's total cost, we can calculate the approximate cost of one such bomb. The current price tag will be about $59,600 per unit.
This is actually quite low for this bomb. For example, for Poland in 2025, the US set a price tag of about $128,500 per GBU-39/B.
However, it's worth noting that this cost may include various sets of additional equipment and services. Besides, the order volume differs significantly, Poland was then allowed to purchase up to 1,400 GBU-39/Bs.
No less important are delivery timelines, since 3 years until the first batch is a very considerable period. This obviously may indicate production line congestion. This is important for Ukraine, since the Armed Forces actively use them for strikes against russians from F-16, MiG-29, as well as Su-27 fighters.
However, such long timelines should not affect Ukraine, since back in 2024 a large contract worth $6.9 billion was concluded for GBU-39/B deliveries to Ukraine and several other countries.
GBU-39/B belongs to small-sized aviation munitions, which is why it received the corresponding name Small Diameter Bomb (SDB). The SDB's weight is only 129 kg, allowing a fighter to carry four such munitions at once on one hardpoint.
GBU-39/B's strike range is about 90 km, but as with all other glide bombs, it depends on release conditions. For example, when released from 15 km at supersonic speed, it reaches a record range of 137 km.
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