Britain pledged to provide Ukraine with Paveway IV precision-guided bombs, a weapon that can help Ukraine strike back at Russia when Moscow rains down. glide bomb down a series of goals in Kiev recently.
Paveway IV is part of a package of 1,600 projectiles the UK pledged earlier this week to aid Ukraine. It is unclear how many precision-guided bombs will be delivered to Ukraine or when they will arrive.
Paveway bombs dropped from airplanes. Photo: RTX
Paveway IV, the latest variant in the Paveway bomb line, is essentially a conventional unguided bomb converted into a precision-guided weapon. They can use laser or satellite guidance systems to find their way to their targets.
This weapon has been used by British warplanes in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya. The British Royal Air Force used Paveway IV bombs launched from Typhoon aircraft to attack two military locations of Houthi forces in Yemen in January 2024.
Weapons to respond to Russian glide bombs
Paveway IV is designed based on the Mark 82 high explosive bomb. These bombs weigh about 230 kg and are equipped with GPS and laser guidance systems. According to the developers, the Paveway IV bomb can be programmed with target coordinates in the air before launching.
The British Royal Air Force deployed Paveway IV bombs on Eurofighter Typhoon and Tornado GR4 fighter aircraft. In Ukraine, Soviet-made MiG-29 and Su-27 aircraft will be adapted to use these aerial bombs.
The Ukrainian Air Force already has experience using similar ammunition types such as the French AASM Hammer and JDAM-ER, so the process of integrating Paveway IV will be easier.
Russia also widely uses high-precision weapons converted from conventional bombs to bombard Ukrainian targets. These bombs could be launched from outside the coverage area of Ukraine’s air defenses.
In recent times, Russia has used devastating glide bombs against Ukrainian positions, attacking the country’s defense forces and opening the way for Russian troops to advance to the front line. Many Ukrainian soldiers admitted that these bombs were truly “nightmares”.
“Paveway IV will allow Ukraine to strike back at Russian forces and target high-value assets such as Moscow’s command center and air defense system,” military expert David Hambling told Newsweek.
“Effective air defense systems on both sides have significantly reduced the impact of tactical air power. This is why aircraft need longer-range weapons like Paveway IV to be able to attack from outside the danger zone,” Mr. Hambling added.
Attacking “soft” targets
According to the Royal Air Force, Paveway IV bombs have a laser guidance system, meaning they can operate even in bad weather or through enemy smoke screens.
Sergej Sulenny, founder of Germany’s Center for European Recovery Initiatives, said that although these bombs are “quite old” they are “highly accurate” weapons and “very” worthy technology. trust.
“This is a good weapon against soft targets (not fortified). Air defense systems, radars, weapons depots and communications centers will be the main targets,” he said.
According to Mr. Sulenny, the Paveway IV bomb, combined with other high-precision weapons that Ukraine possesses, will be very effective if Ukraine carries out a similar campaign against Russia.
However, Mr. James Black, Assistant Director for Defense Research of RAND European branch, has a different opinion. Ukraine has a smaller air force and is not as modernly equipped as Russia’s, so it is difficult for Kiev to apply the same tactics as Moscow, which is to mobilize large numbers of aircraft to bomb massively.
The Paveway IV’s range is also an issue. This type of bomb can accurately strike targets more than 30km from the drop point, so aircraft carrying them will still face the risk of being shot down.
Russian glide bombs can be launched from a distance of 60-70km, the aircraft will not have to approach too close to the target, avoiding the risk of falling into the sights of the enemy air defense system.
Mr. Black said that the Paveway IV bomb will not be the decisive weapon on the battlefield. According to him, the long-range ATACMS missiles provided by the US to Ukraine in the latest aid package will have “much greater” value.
With ATACMS, Ukraine can target more Russian targets and not rely on locating enemy air defense systems or endangering manned aircraft.
Mr. Justin Bronk, an expert on Russia and air warfare at the UK-based RUSI Institute, said that Ukraine may not use many laser targeting features because of the lack of accompanying support equipment. On the other hand, to ensure aircraft safety, they will have to drop bombs at a longer distance, but this will reduce accuracy.
