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Capability Ratings - Ground

All the items that make for a superior air superiority aircraft apply to ground attack. But there are a few differences. Bombing depends a lot more on electronics and carrying capacity. How many bombs an aircraft could carry used to be the main factor, but no more. Beginning in World War II, more emphasis was placed on fire control. That is, instruments that helped you put the bombs exactly where you wanted them. The two major innovations that came out of World War II were precision bomb sights and electronic aids. The bomb sights were precision instruments which controlled for factors like the speed of the aircraft, wind and the types of bombs carried. Some calculation was done, but this was limited by the technology available. Electronic devices were most useful for bombing at unseen (because of clouds, darkness or smoke) targets. Radar that was pointed at the ground and showed the shape of things down there was a big breakthrough. For the last sixty years, these primitive (by today's standards) have been steadily improved. In World War II, half the bombs would, on average, land within 3,000 feet of the target. By the 1950s, you could get half your bombs within 400 feet. By the 1980s, this was down to 40 feet. Another factor is the electronics on the bomb itself. Again, beginning in World War II, guided bombs were developed and used. These were controlled by radio, with a controller in the aircraft manipulating the fins on the bomb. By the 1970s, lasers were used to bounce laser light off the target. Specially equipped bombs had a sensor that could see the reflected laser light and automatically manipulate the small winds on the bomb to crash into the target. With these guided bombs, you could hit ten feet or less from the target. The downside of this is that the more precise fire control systems, as well as the guided bombs, cost a lot more (about 20 times more). The fire control equipment for laser guided bombs is also very expensive, a million dollars or more per aircraft. As a result, many air forces have resisted buying the more expensive, and more accurate, bombing gear. Eventually, most aviators realized that this was false economy. Better bombing accuracy saves you a lot of money in lost aircraft, and the expense of flying more missions to take out a target.

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