The Guided Bomb Unit 28 (GBU-28) is a 5,000 pound (2,268 kg) laser-guided "bunker busting" bomb nicknamed "Deep Throat" produced originally by the Watervliet Arsenal, Watervliet, New York, as a way to take out Sadam Hussein during the Gulf War. It went from drawing board to the sky over Iraq in less than 3 weeks, a testament to the hard work done by the Watervliet Arsenal. It was specifically developed for use in Operation Desert Storm to penetrate hardened Iraqi command centres located deep underground. However, only two of these weapons were dropped in Desert Storm, both by F-111Fs.
The initial batch of GBU-28s were built from modified 8 inch/203 mm artillery barrels (principally from deactivated M110 howitzers), but later examples were purpose-built. They weigh 4,700 pounds (2132 kg) and contain 630 pounds (286 kg) of high explosive. The operator illuminates a target with a laser designator and then the munition guides to a spot of laser energy reflected from the target.
The bomb underwent critical testing at the Tonopah Test Range, Nevada, a major test facility for United States Department of Energy funded weapon programs. It proved capable of penetrating over 30 meters (100 ft) of earth or 6 meters (20 ft) of solid concrete; this was demonstrated when a test bomb, bolted to a rocket sled, smashed through 22 ft (6.7 m) of reinforced concrete and still retain enough kinetic energy to travel a mile downrange. The GBU-28 is unique in that the total development time from conception to the first drop test took only 2 weeks, and the weapon went into active service after only one test drop, at Eglin AFB, Florida on 19 February 1991.
The first foreign sale of the GBU-28 was the acquisition of 100 units by Israel, authorized in April 2005. Delivery of the weapons was accelerated at the request of Israel in July 2006. Delivery was described as "upcoming" in a cable dated November 2009 which suggested that the weapon could be used against Iran's nuclear facilities.
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Category:Aerial bombs of the United States Category:Guided bombs
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