The military is particularly puzzled by one of the many revelations of US data breaches these days: The success rate of the state-of-the-art JDAM-ER bombs supplied by the United States to the Ukrainian Air Force is significantly lower than expected. There are probably two reasons for this.
The bombs are “ordinary” free-fall bombs of various sizes, weighing between 250 and 1000 kilograms. The highlight: They were retrofitted with a GPS control unit and fins on the rear. So the bomb can make corrections on its way to the target and hit the target GPS coordinates with meter precision – the pilot just needs to throw it roughly in the right direction.
The “ER” version delivered to Ukraine also has folding wings that increase the range of these bombs to over 70 kilometers. JDAMs have been used very reliably in previous conflicts – but in Ukraine the hit rate is below expectations, according to classified documents that have recently surfaced.
Two reasons for failure
Talking to armed forces experts, they give the “Krone” two reasons for the JDAM-ER problems:
- In isolated cases, the Russian army is likely to succeed GPS signal in certain parts of the battlefield or at critical facilities to such an extent that the bombs lose their signal and cannot go to their proper target in the final phase of flight. According to the leaked documents, the US secret services therefore already recommended preemptively destroying the jammers (jammers) before the JDAM was deployed.
- The bombs need one before they fall complex connection to the cockpit the aircraft carrier also has numerous fuses attached to the suspension points (see photo below). The Ukrainian Air Force’s older Mig and Sukhoi aircraft are not 100 percent compatible with Western high-tech bombs. The slightest interference in arming and the bomb becomes a “dud”, i.e. a dud.
Four of the nine bombs missed
According to the US data leaks, Ukraine may have dropped at least nine JDAMs, four of which may have missed their target due to Russian jammers — a devastating percentage for the GPS weapons, which are said to have a nearly 100 percent chance of hitting. become. .
Data breach ‘devastating’
It is clear to Colonel Markus Reisner, military expert in the army, that much of the content of the published Secret Service documents is correct, he told the “Krone”. The way the documents were made public was a “devastating twist” for the United States. The case shows how easily information that thousands of people have access to can reach the general public. That would not serve the US well in the international intelligence community.
As a first consequence, the Pentagon has sharply reduced the number of employees who have access to classified documents, CBS reports.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
