Russia’s FAB-series glide bombs have revolutionised the battlefield. It is the most cost-effective way to turn the high-explosive dumb bombs into highly precise yet lethal smart bombs.
Introduction
For instance, during the Second World War the Soviet T-34 tank was intended as a battlefield adaptation and its 76 mm main canon could fire high velocity rounds. It was far superior to its German counterparts and overpowered German panzers. Moreover, the T-34’s sloped armour deflected incoming rounds and proved better than the German Tiger tank’s steel armour that was perpendicular to its main body. In a nutshell, for any military operation to succeed, the military planners aim to deploy cost-effective weapons for inflicting significant damage on the adversarial forces. Further, the aim always remains constant to target the enemy’s main fighting force.
During the last three years, the military observers and researchers have been monitoring closely the Russian military adaptation on the battlefield. Russia has deployed and tested the efficacy of almost all of its conventional weapon systems in its Special Military Operation in Ukraine, and the results have been quite surprising indeed. For precision strikes deep into the enemy territory, Russia employed its long-range artillery, Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS), cruise missiles, hypersonic missiles, and ballistic missiles. It is noticeable that subsonic as well as hypersonic cruise and ballistic missiles are relatively expensive. Nonetheless, these missiles offer mobility and could be fired from mobile and fixed launchers. The cruise missiles, on the other hand, could be launched from MiG-31, Tu-95, and Tu-22 bomber aircrafts, yet they require prior preparation.
Russia’s FAB-series Glide Bombs
To overcome the procedural and structural hurdles, the Russian military planners decided to turn the FAB-series heavy dumb bombs into highly precise smart glide bombs by installing the UMPK kits on them. UMPK is an abbreviation in the Russian language which means Universally Modular Gliding and Correction kit. The UMPK kits are simple, cheap, easy to manufacture, and could be effortlessly installed on these bombs. The UMPK kits have folded wings which open up just after the release and glides towards the target. The bombs have to be released at high altitudes so that they can glide towards the target using their wings. The UMPK kit is guided using Russia’s GLONASS navigation system, and some sources indicate that they also use Inertial Navigation System (INS) to operate under high intensity electromagnetic spectrum to avoid electronic jamming.
The FAB-series glide bombs could destroy targets up to an estimated range of 60 to 80 km, and with the upgraded UMPK-PD kits the range could be increased to almost 100 km. The FAB-series has a variety of payloads to engage targets of different sorts. For instance, the FAB-250 has a weight of 250 kilograms, FAB-500 has a weight of almost 500 kilograms, the FAB-1500 has 1.5 tons of explosive power, and the FAB-3000 has almost 3 tons of potent destructive power. They are primarily used to hit and destroy the frontline Ukrainian targets including command posts, artillery platforms, bunkers and tunnel networks, and most importantly enemy troop concentrations. The Russian Su-34 is tasked with dropping these glide bombs; however, MiG-25, Tu22M, and Tu-95 could also be used for dropping FAB-3000 glide bombs.
The glide bombs usually don’t have rocket propulsion or any other engine to accelerate the projectile towards the target; hence, these weapons have a little or no heat signature, making them more difficult to be intercepted using heat seeking missiles and other radar-guided anti-air artillery. The glide bombs move under the force of gravity and greatly rely on the velocity and altitude of the aircraft.
Conclusions
This article does not aim to glorify war; nonetheless, it is geared towards understanding the battlefield adaptation and transformation. Undoubtedly, Russia’s FAB-series glide bombs equipped with UMPK kits have provided the Russian Air Force with an enormous tactical advantage over its adversaries. These glide bombs are quite similar to the American Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) bombs in their appearance as well as operation. It was reported that Russian will mas produce 75,000 of these bombs in 2025, and understandably, using such weapons, Russia could use its air power more cost-effectively and efficiently against the Ukrainian targets. Since, the glide bombs are very hard to intercept, they are ideal for being used to engage military targets, thus increasing the kill probability.
Russia’s military adaptation has to be appreciated and replicated by other armed forces, as it has converted the Soviet-era FAB-series dumb bombs into highly precise and cost-effective weapon systems. The Russian Air Force launches these bombs from standoff ranges and effectively avoids the Ukrainian air defence systems, which are positioned to defend the cities and high-value places.
Muhammad Ali Baig – is a Research Fellow at the Institute of Strategic Studies, Islamabad (ISSI), Pakistan. He is a Ph.D. candidate and a distinguished graduate of National Defence University (NDU), Islamabad, Pakistan
