- published: 05 Sep 2014
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The GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) is a 250 pound (113 kg) precision-guided glide bomb that is intended to provide aircraft with the ability to carry a higher number of bombs. Most US Air Force aircraft will be able to carry (using the BRU-61/A rack) a pack of four SDBs in place of a single 2,000 pounds (910 kg) bomb.
The initial SDB is expected to be replaced with the Small Diameter Bomb II (SDB-II) / GBU-53/B.
In 2002, while Boeing and Lockheed Martin were competing to develop the Small Diameter Bomb, Darleen A. Druyun—at that time Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition and Management—deleted the requirement for moving target engagement, which favored Boeing. She was later convicted of violating a conflict of interest statute.
Two variants are being developed. One version of the SDB is equipped with a GPS-aided inertial navigation system to attack fixed/stationary targets such as fuel depots, bunkers etc. The second variant (Boeing's GBU-40 or Raytheon's GBU-53 (SDB II)) will include a thermal seeker and radar with automatic target recognition features for striking mobile targets such as tanks, vehicles, and mobile command posts.
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