Laser-guided bombs tested successfully

[RPK]

Laser-guided bombs tested successfully

BALASORE: Days after successful trials of nuclear-capable Prithvi-II, Agni-I and ship-launched Dhanush missiles, India today conducted the flight trials of laser-guided bombs (LGBs) from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur off Orissa coast.

Sources said the officials of Indian Air Force successfully carried out two rounds of tests of the LGBs using the newly-developed guidance kit from the Jaguar fighter aircraft. In January two flight trials of the LGBs were conducted from the same defence test facility.

The flight trials were conducted to test the effectiveness of the guidance and control systems of the LGBs. “The LGBs were released from the aircraft as per prescribed standard operating procedures. On-board systems in both the trials worked satisfactorily and the mission objectives were met,” said an official.

The flight trials of the LGBs were, however, conducted in a simulated air attack condition. Dubbed as air simulation exercise, the aim and objective of the tests were to provide training to the fighter pilots to use the sophisticated weapons developed by the country besides testing the effectiveness of the system.

“A number of tests has been done both through simulation and flight tests over the last few years to reach the required performance levels. The bomb, once released by the mother aircraft at appropriate range, will seek the target and home on to it very accurately and with high reliability,” said a defence scientist.

Bangalore-based Aeronautics Development Establishment (ADE) has developed the guidance kit for the LGBs and it is designed to improve accuracy of air-to-ground bombing by IAF.

 

[Mahakaya]

This is super news!

Now we can produce multiple kits and don't need to worry about LGB kits being provided to PAKISTAN!

 

[KEETARP]

Next target for DRDO should be
ALL WEATHER LASER ILLUMINATION & TARGETTING POD with Night operation and high accuracy - something like SNIPER POD

 

[mjnaushad]

This is super news!

Now we can produce multiple kits and don't need to worry about LGB kits being provided to PAKISTAN!

From where all the sudden Pakistan came into the scene.???
And by the way we already make LGBs.......

 

[Mahakaya]

From where all the sudden Pakistan came into the scene.???
And by the way we already make LGBs.......

It was in recent news that the USofA will be providing Pakistan with LGB Kits, so just a reaction based on that. No ill intentions involved!

Thanks for educating me that Pakistan already makes LGBs. Can you please share a link with us?

 

[manglasiva]

From where all the sudden Pakistan came into the scene.???
And by the way we already make LGBs.......

PAK filic INDIANS

 

[sancho]

Next target for DRDO should be
ALL WEATHER LASER ILLUMINATION & TARGETTING POD with Night operation and high accuracy - something like SNIPER POD

If I'm not wrong laser guidance is always limited by weather/visibility or? Not like GPS guided bombs like JDAM, or AASM.

 

[sancho]

This is super news!

Now we can produce multiple kits and don't need to worry about LGB kits being provided to PAKISTAN!

Again just one of these media reports to make people go crazy!

Think about it logically man, to use these bombs against India, PAF fighters has to enter Indian air space which makes them vulnerable for our air defense too. If the US had provided stand off weapons like JSOW, or Slamm-er, that can be used from ranges around 130 to 270Km, I could understand such concerns, but not for bomb kits.
PAFs F16, especially the new B52s can use these weapons too, but I only saw reports about providing JDAMs (btw they are not laser guided, but GPS guided. US laser guided bombs are Paveway bombs) and no stand off weapons, that will be interesting too in terms of MMRCA. Will the US be ready to offer them to us on F16IN and F18Sh? Their companies might be, but will the US Gov too?

However, to develop our own LGB is good for us, so we won't be dependent on supplies from other countries, the question is only, how comparable are they in performance?

 

[manglasiva]

If I'm not wrong laser guidance is always limited by weather/visibility or? Not like GPS guided bombs like JDAM, or AASM.

US can switch OFF its satellites in the subcontinent, if its interests are not served during the conflict ie INDO -PAK war to make GPS devices blind...

 

[sancho]

US can switch OFF its satellites in the subcontinent, if its interests are not served during the conflict ie INDO -PAK war to make GPS devices blind...

Could, but unlikely (at least in a war where their forces are not involved), because turning off GPS would impact them in this reagion too and it would mainly hurt Pakistan alone, because we still have the Russian KAB bombs guided by their GLONASS system.
But that wasn't my point anyway, I meant that laser guidance is not as addurate as other guidance systems and is limited to weather and visibility.

 

[Justin Joseph]

US can switch OFF its satellites in the subcontinent, if its interests are not served during the conflict ie INDO -PAK war to make GPS devices blind...

Sir,

for that same reason we have entered in a agreement with the Russia for its GLONASS in time of war.

http://www.****************/india-to-use-russian-glonass-navigation-system-minister-4614/

Also, we are building our own for rigional use in and about 1500 kms around India. The Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS)

So, need not to worry.

thanks

 

[DaRk WaVe]

If I'm not wrong laser guidance is always limited by weather/visibility or? Not like GPS guided bombs like JDAM, or AASM.

yup

Problems and Limitations of Laser-guided bomb

While LGBs are highly accurate under ideal conditions, they present a number of challenges to be used successfully, making them somewhat less than the "silver bullet" sometimes suggested.

The first problem is designation. To insure accurate guidance, the target must be illuminated for several seconds before launch, allowing the weapon's seeker to obtain a positive lock, and the target must remain illuminated during much of the weapon's transit time. If the designator's "sparkle" is turned off, blocked, or moved, the weapon's accuracy will be greatly reduced.

For an accurate attack against a small target, uninterrupted designation is essential. On the other hand, the guidance controls of many LGBs (such as the American Paveway II) cause large deflections (visible as a noticeable wobble) which reduce the bomb's range. To compensate, crews will often release their weapons in an unguided, ballistic arc, activating the designator only to refine the bomb's final impact point. This is more demanding of crew and aircraft, requiring a high standard of basic, unguided bombing accuracy and more attention to the bomb's flight.

Laser designation is very vulnerable to weather conditions. Cloud cover, rain, and smoke frequently make reliable designation impossible. In war conditions, many sorties have been aborted as a result of poor visibility.

In the 1970s and 1980s it was common for aircraft to depend on a separate designator, either carried by ground forces, operated by the forward air controller, or carried by another aircraft in the strike group. It was often deemed more practical for one aircraft to provide lasing for its comrades. Modern conflicts and a growing emphasis on precision-guided weapons have pointed to the need for autonomous designation, and many fighter-bomber aircraft are now being fitted with designator pods to self-designate for laser-guided munitions.

Even if the launch aircraft is capable of autonomous designation, problems remain. Laser illumination can be interrupted by smoke, fog, or clouds, limiting the usefulness of LGBs in poor weather or very dusty conditions. In desert warfare, such as the 1991 Gulf War, laser designation sometimes reflected off the sand, causing weapons to home on false targets. Furthermore, the need to provide designation may leave the aircraft dangerously exposed to ground fire or enemy air support.

An additional concern is the limited "launch envelope" of an unguided weapon. The reflected laser "sparkle" can be described as a basket into which the weapon must be steered to hit the target. If the weapon is released too low or to far from the target, or in a trajectory that puts the weapon outside the seeker's field of view, it is likely to miss. Optimum altitude for an effective LGB attack is relatively high, increasing the aircraft's vulnerability to surface-to-air missile (SAM) attacks.

For these reasons, while all modern air forces have put an increasing emphasis on LGBs and other precision-guided munitions, some tacticians still see an important role for the accurate delivery of unguided bombs. During their 1981 raid on the Iraqi nuclear reactor at Osirak, the Israeli Air Force chose to use unguided Mk 84 bombs rather than laser-guided weapons because they felt the need to designate the target would leave the attackers unacceptably vulnerable.

Laser-guided bomb at AllExperts

 

[Mahakaya]

Again just one of these media reports to make people go crazy!

Think about it logically man, to use these bombs against India, PAF fighters has to enter Indian air space which makes them vulnerable for our air defense too. If the US had provided stand off weapons like JSOW, or Slamm-er, that can be used from ranges around 130 to 270Km, I could understand such concerns, but not for bomb kits.
PAFs F16, especially the new B52s can use these weapons too, but I only saw reports about providing JDAMs (btw they are not laser guided, but GPS guided. US laser guided bombs are Paveway bombs) and no stand off weapons, that will be interesting too in terms of MMRCA. Will the US be ready to offer them to us on F16IN and F18Sh? Their companies might be, but will the US Gov too?

However, to develop our own LGB is good for us, so we won't be dependent on supplies from other countries, the question is only, how comparable are they in performance?

I understand your point - Oh hell I was just in a teenage supper happy mode - and apologize for the behaviour.

Thanks for the useful post though!

 

[Kinetic]

Great job DRDO. Its developed under Project Sudarshan where ADE developed laser seekers for bombs and shells.

 

[KEETARP]

Could, but unlikely (at least in a war where their forces are not involved), because turning off GPS would impact them in this reagion too and it would mainly hurt Pakistan alone, because we still have the Russian KAB bombs guided by their GLONASS system.
But that wasn't my point anyway, I meant that laser guidance is not as addurate as other guidance systems and is limited to weather and visibility.

You are missing very important point if you have Laser guidance kits , you can convert your bomb size to your requirements.
And these kits are very cheap when compared to stand-off A2S weapons which are Satellite guided .
Remember Kargil story - Stand-off weapons were not available from France bcoz of sanctions ,
but we had kits and converted vintage SPANISH 70's era Bomb into LGB which were fired from MIRAGE with ATLIS pod

Here is the link

The IAF in the Kargil Operations - 1999

Finally for illumination issues what Indian Air force has done is arm
1 Jaguar for LGB's
Another Jaguar with Laser pod and guidance .

Mastermind at its Best​