Boeing awarded US Air Force contract for sustainment and logistics support of GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb I.

As reported by Andrew Salerno-Garthwaite in Airforce Technology, Boeing has secured a contract worth $33 million to provide support and logistics for the Small Diameter Bomb I (SDB-I), also known as the GBU-39, as announced by the US Department of Defense on November 22. The GBU-39 is a next-generation precision strike weapon known for its cost-effectiveness and minimal collateral damage, and it is compatible with a variety of aircraft, including the F-15E, F-22A, and F-35 fighters.

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Airman 1st Class Matt Aggers and Staff Sgt. Randy Broome perform a final check of the stowed twin wings on four ground-training Guided Bomb Unit-39 SDBs loaded on an F-15E Strike Eagle at RAF Lakenheath, UK (Picture source: USAF/Master Sgt. Lance Cheung)

The GBU-39B Small Diameter Bomb, or SDB, is an extended range all-weather, day or night 250-pound class, guided munition. The SDB relies on the Global Positioning System to provide navigation to the target. Additionally, its small size allows increased aircraft loadout to achieve multiple kills per sortie and inherently reduces the probability of collateral damage.

The SDB system employs a smart carriage capable of carrying four 250-lb class guided air-to-surface munitions. It is capable of destroying high-priority fixed and stationary targets from Air Force fighters and bombers in internal bays or on external hard points. SDB increases aircraft loadout, decreases the logistical footprint, decreases collateral damage, and improves aircraft sortie generation times.

The GBU-39 is a 250lb precision-guided glide bomb designed to enable aircraft to carry a higher quantity of precise munitions due to its compact size. This allows for a greater payload capacity for a single attack aircraft compared to the existing bomb units in use. In the United States Air Force, many aircraft are equipped with sets of four SDBs using a BRU-61/A rack, replacing a single 2,000lb bomb.

The weapon system is capable of standoff ranges in excess of 40 nautical miles. The system can be targeted and released against single or multiple targets. SDB target coordinates are loaded into the weapon before release either on the ground or in the air by the aircrew. Once the weapon is released, it relies on GPS/INS to self-navigate to the desired impact point.

Back in 2006, Air Force Technology reports, the Air Force declared the GBU-39 operationally ready, with Lt. Col. Mark Pierce describing it as a versatile weapon effective day or night, capable of engaging targets in various directions. It has an impressive range of 50 nautical miles when launched at 40,000ft from an aircraft traveling at Mach .95. The GBU-39 is typically deployed against a range of targets, including hardened aircraft bunkers, early-warning radar systems, stationary SCUD missile launchers, and stationary artillery positions.

SDB programs remain a consistent and important element of national procurement plans, with countries like Belgium, Israel, and Saudi Arabia acquiring this system, as indicated in GlobalData's The Global Military Ammunition Market 2021–2031 report, Andrew Salerno-Garthwaite comments.

U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Angelica Range, a munitions systems technician with the 379th Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron, guides a bomb rack unit equipped with four GBU-39 small diameter bombs into position at the munitions storage area on Al Udeid Air Base, Nov. 27, 2020 (Picture source: U.S. Air National Guard/Staff Sgt. Jordan Martin)