New Russian bomb more smoke than fire

From Aviation Week

Russia Trumpets Conventional ''Nuke,'' With More Smoke Than Fire

Sep 20, 2007

By David A. Fulghum, Amy Butler and Douglas Barrie

Video of Russia's "Father of All Bombs" suggests that the design doesn't quite meet Moscow's claims of being the equivalent of a nuclear weapon without the radiation, nor that it was dropped from a high-speed bomber.

And while Russia is showcasing its massive new conventional bomb, the United States is continuing its focus on developing smaller weapons that create less collateral damage. The weapon appears to be considerably more powerful than the U.S. built MOAB, but without the flexibility of launch from a fast-moving, high-altitude aircraft and the extended, standoff glide range.

The video released by the Russian military (and linked at the end of this story) shows a Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack bomber taking off and opening its weapons bay. But the film clip then cuts to images that appear to have been taken from the upper interior of a cargo aircraft with the bomb attached to a sled that is pulled into space by a very long, already extended drogue chute.

That kind of extraction is comparatively straightforward from a horizontal bay such as with a cargo aircraft - but it would be far more difficult from an internal weapons bay unless it was extensively and uniquely modified, according to U.S. Air Force analysts.

The Russian type has variously been referred to as a vacuum bomb, a thermobaric bomb and a fuel-air explosive. A two-stage explosion seemed to be evident in video. A material like liquid fuel or a powdered explosive was dispersed into a large cloud with the first detonation. After combining with air, the cloud was ignited, which created the much larger second blast.

Russia - and previously the Soviet Union - has carried out research and development and likely deployed weapons in this class. They ranged from tube-launched, anti-structure munitions to what is believed have been a warhead for the Kh-22 (AS-4 Kitchen) supersonic cruise missile. The concept for the latter was that detonation close to surface naval crafts would produce blasts of so-called overpressure that were powerful enough to seriously damage superstructure such as masts and ship antennas. Even a near miss could render the ship electronically blind.

The U.S.-built MOAB (Mother of All Bombs), to which the Russian bomb is being compared, has stub wings and four, waffle-iron-like tail surfaces for precision guidance and standoff range. The tail-surface-control design was lifted from tail fins developed by the Russians for ballistic missiles, and later, their medium-range air-to-air missiles. Lattice fins give more control, faster response and weigh less than conventional fins, say weapons developers at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla.

The Russian bomb had no wings or fins. Moreover, it descends by parachute, which means there is little chance of precision targeting.

The Russian weapon, as shown in various degrees in video, is reminiscent of the much older U.S. Air Force Daisy Cutter that was dropped from Lockheed C-130 transports in Vietnam to clear helicopter landing sites in the jungle. A few were pulled out of storage for attacks on Iraqi defensive lines in Kuwait for the 1991 war. The overpressure from the fuel-air blast would clear a swath through a mine field almost instantaneously and shred barbed wire entanglements.

Nevertheless, the Russian blast via video was impressive with armored vehicles in the foreground being dwarfed although not engulfed by the blast. Aftermath pictures show a Russian armored personnel carrier with its wheels flattened and side armor riddled with what appears to be shrapnel - but it was not overturned. Also, the ground below the blast is flat, not cratered. The surface is covered with small holes, and no evidence of plant life remains.

Three long, reinforced-concrete buildings apparently were part of the Russian target set. Only the first building collapsed though its back wall remained standing. The rear two buildings, shielded by the first, remained intact.

Meanwhile, U.S. weapons developers continue exploring how to decrease collateral damage from air-dropped weapons. Boeing, on Sept. 14, conducted the second flight test of its Focused Lethality Munition (FLM), a low-collateral-damage derivative of the 250-pound Small-Diameter Bomb (SDB).

The first so-called "auto-pilot" test, demonstrating that the guidance system operates properly with the weapons mass, was conducted July 11. Both trials used inert weapons.

FLM warhead tests have been conducted that validate the design using a composite warhead that disintegrates upon detonation together with a new, dense, explosive fill. It allows FLM to mimic SDB's mass while using overpressure, not blast fragmentation, as its kill mechanism. SDB relies on its blast patter to destroy targets. FLM is designed to kill personnel while leaving structures intact. End-to-end flight testing using an active warhead is expected by year end. Initial deliveries are expected early next year.

Video:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=EiT7M3YwyU4

www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1ee_cDX7ys

Fulghum and Butler reported from Washington; Barrie reported from London