In the Western press, reports have begun to circulate that the Ukrainian Air Force has started using American GBU-39 Small Diameter Bombs (SDBs) to strike russian occupiers.
The primary source here is a report from The Washington Post, whose authors cite unnamed "internal Ukrainian assessments."
Read more: Ukrainian Forces Shot Down Another russian Su-25 Aircraft (Video)
“One U.S. weapon used by aircraft, the GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb, has proved resilient to jamming,” according to The Washington Post, The same article notes that “nearly 90 percent of dropped [Small Diameter Bombs] struck their target.”
In turn, The War Zone emphasizes in its publication that the aforementioned data from WaPo may also confirm the hypothesis previously expressed by TWZ in February of this year - that the fragments found then (as believed at the time) of GLSDB may actually be fragments of GBU-39.
"No details are provided about the numbers of SDBs provided to Ukraine and which aircraft are dropping them, but the article states that they began to be delivered to Ukraine in November 2023."
In both cases, there are not even assumptions as to which specific types of aircraft in the Ukrainian Air Force fleet the American GBU-39 precision-guided glide bombs were adapted for, and what exactly was the extent of adaptation required for this.
Furthermore, there are no publicly available images of Ukrainian aircraft with GBU-39, which is why reports of the possible use of this type of guided bombs by the Ukrainian aviation should be considered preliminary information requiring further confirmation.
It should be noted that the report of the use of GBU-39 from Ukrainian aircraft appears at least unexpected. Especially considering that these same GBU-39s are used as a component of GLSDB, the use of which on the battlefield in Ukraine has become problematic due to the russian EW factor.
GBU-39 bombs weigh 130 kilograms and have a claimed maximum range of up to 110 kilometers (but obviously, under the condition of release from maximum altitude). The range at which GBU-39's can be dropped from Soviet aircraft in the Ukrainian Air Force fleet is currently unknown.
Earlier, Defense Express wrote that Ukrainian MiG-29s could carry secretive ADM-160 MALD decoy drones up to 450 km.
Read more: Ukrainian MiG-29 Spotted with French AASM Hammer Guided Bomb (Photo)
