The US Deputy Secretary of Defense said that an improved long-range ammunition provided to Ukraine was not effective due to Russian interference.
“A company that I do not want to name has developed an interesting idea of improving an air-to-ground weapon into a ground-launched version, thereby creating a long-range fire system,” Deputy Minister of National Defense said. US Office in charge of procurement Bill LaPlante said during a discussion session at the Global Security Forum in the US on April 25, referring to one of the weapons aided by Washington to Kiev.
Mr. LaPlante did not mention the specific weapon or company, but this description matches the Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB) produced by the US Boeing Corporation. However, military experts believe that the US Deputy Secretary of Defense may also be mentioning a new weapon, never before announced.
“They race to test and produce as quickly as possible,” LaPlante said, adding that US officials have removed many testing requirements to speed up the transfer of this weapon to Ukraine. “We only ask them to check to ensure safety, and the combat testing process will take place right in the field. That weapon was sent to Ukraine and is not operational.”
Design of GLSDB projectile with GBU-39 bomb mounted on M26 rocket. Graphics: SAAB
US officials listed a series of reasons why this weapon became “useless”, such as the combat environment being subjected to intense electronic suppression, and the lack of usage tactics and complete operating procedures.
“When weapons are sent to people who are fighting, they will try them out a few times and quickly throw them away if they don’t work. That’s what happened with this type of ammunition,” Deputy Secretary LaPlante said.
The US Department of Defense and the Ukrainian army have not commented on the information.
Western military experts believe that the information Mr. LaPlante gave could have a wide-ranging impact, because the US military and many allied countries are staffing a large number of small diameter bombs (SDB) guided by air. satellite positioning (GPS). The fact that Russian electronic warfare systems can disable US GPS-guided weapons could force Washington and its allies to change their combat methods in future conflicts.
“The US can increase the strength of encrypted GPS signals in some areas to cope with jamming measures, but it is unclear whether this measure will overcome the enemy’s electronic suppression situation,” the tree said. Writer Joseph Trevithick writes on a military website War Zone of America.
This is not the first time US officials have admitted that high-precision weapons transferred to Ukraine were not effective in combat. A series of GPS-guided weapons such as JDAM bombs, Excalibur artillery shells and HIMARS rockets, which are praised for their “excellent accuracy”, have repeatedly missed targets in Ukraine due to Russian electronic warfare. interference.
GLSDB was jointly developed by two corporations, Boeing of the United States and Saab of Sweden, and is a combination of the M26 rocket with the GBU-39 small diameter bomb, which can be fired from HIMARS and M270 rocket artillery like the ATACMS missile family. , or fired from a separate launch system.
GLSDB bullets are guided by satellite and can operate in all weather conditions. GLSDB has a maximum range of about 150 km, twice as high as GLMRS rockets usually fired by HIMARS and M270 artillery, but a little less than ATACMS.
Russian media said the weapon was first used in February, when its fragments were discovered in the city of Kremennaya in Lugansk province.
Vu Anh (According to War Zone)
