(Zaman Al Wasl)- A well-informed source in the Syrian Air Force revealed to Zaman al-Wasl that Israel had used US advanced ‘smart missiles’ in the April-9 airstrikes on the Iranian-held T-4 air base in Syria.
The two Israeli F-15 warplanes used GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) in the 'successful' strike that left 7 Iranian forces killed, Including a Revolutionary Guard Colonel Mehdi Dahqan Yazdli, commander of the drone base in T-4.
According to images obtained by Zaman al-Wasl to the strike scene showed massive destruction inside the hangars but its roofs were undamaged.
The GBU-39 SDB have penetrated the ceiling from small holes and hit its target, the source said.
Its small size and accuracy allow for an effective munition with less collateral damage. Warhead penetration is 3 feet (0.91 m) of steel reinforced concrete and the fuze has electronic safe and fire (ESAF) cockpit selectable functions, including air burst and delayed options, according to military digests.
Russia, which held Israel accountable for the missile assault said the T4 airbase, between the cities of Homs and Palmyra, was bombarded by eight guided missiles.
The Israeli F15-fighter jets, designed for long-range bomb attacks, launched the strikes while flying over Lebanon, Russia's MoD claims, according to the Daily Mail.
GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb (SDB)
According to Wikipedia, The GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) is a 250 lb (110 kg) precision-guided glide bomb that is intended to provide aircraft with the ability to carry a higher number of more accurate bombs.
The original SDB is equipped with a GPS-aided inertial navigation system to attack fixed/stationary targets such as fuel depots, bunkers, etc.
The small size of the bomb allows a single strike aircraft to carry more of the munitions than is possible using currently available bomb units. The SDB carries approximately 38 lb (17 kg) of AFX-757 high explosive. It also has integrated "DiamondBack" type wings which deploy after release, increasing the glide time and therefore the maximum range.
Its size and accuracy allow for an effective munition with less collateral damage. Warhead penetration is 3 feet (0.91 m) of steel reinforced concrete and the fuze has electronic safe and fire (ESAF) cockpit selectable functions, including air burst and delayed options.
The GBU-39 has a circular error probable (CEP) of 5–8 m (16–26 ft). CEP is reduced by updating differential GPS offsets prior to weapon release. These offsets are calculated using an SDB Accuracy Support Infrastructure, consisting of three or more GPS receivers at fixed locations transmitting calculated location to a correlation station at the theatre Air Operations Center. The corrections are then transmitted by Link 16 to SDB-equipped aircraft.
In January 2016, the US Air Force awarded a contract to Scientific Systems Co. Inc. to demonstrate the company's ImageNav technology, a vision-based navigation and precision targeting system that compares a terrain database with the host platform's sensor to make course corrections. ImageNav technology has demonstrated target geo-location and navigation precision greater than three meters.
Zaman Al Wasl
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