Innovation

Boeing's upgrade system will turn a conventional bomb into a cruise missile

Boeing, along with Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, is beginning to develop a system that can turn a conventional 228 kilogram bomb into a compact, precision-guided cruise missile.
Its predecessor was the JDAM guided bomb developed by McDonnell Douglas more than 30 years ago, which was equipped with a self-guided system, GPS navigation and a tail-mounted steering system. The bomb could hit objects with an accuracy of up to five meters, reports Techkult.
The disadvantage of the JDAM was its short flight range of only about 25 km. In its updated version, this figure has almost tripled to 70 km thanks to a set of folding wings.
In 2010, Boeing engineers proposed an even more advanced version, the Power JDAM, fuel tanks and support systems that turn the bomb into a cruise missile with a range of up to 1,300 km. However, this promising know-how lay dormant for almost 13 years until Kratos Defense & Security Solutions offered Boeing its TDI-J85 cruise missile engine, which could also generate 1.5 kW of AC power to power the Power JDAM systems.

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