Air Weapons: French JDAM Enters Combat

Archives

May 1,2008: A French Rafale fighter dropped the first French made smart bomb, in Afghanistan, on April 19th. The bomb, an AASM (Armement Air-Sol Modulaire, or air-to-ground modular weapon) was about a decade in development. Like the U.S. JDAM, it is a GPS kit, attached to a 250 kilogram (550 pound) bomb, and delivers the bomb within 30 feet of the aim point. This kit costs $125,000 each (JDAM costs 75 percent less, but that's because many more JDAMs were purchased, thus spreading development cost over more weapons). The AASM program cost was over $630 million. The AASM entered service in 2006.

There is a second version of AASM, with an infrared (heat sensing) imaging system, that increases accuracy to within three feet of the aim point. This kit costs $171,000 each, and has comparable to U.S. laser guided bomb kits (which cost about $55,000 each.) There are also kits for 275 pound and 1100 pound bombs.

The French AASM dropped on April 19th hit the target.

 


Article Archive

Air Weapons: Current 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 1999 


X

ad
0
20

Help Keep Us Soaring

We need your help! Our subscription base has slowly been dwindling. We need your help in reversing that trend. We would like to add 20 new subscribers this month.

Each month we count on your subscriptions or contributions. You can support us in the following ways:

  1. Make sure you spread the word about us. Two ways to do that are to like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
  2. Subscribe to our daily newsletter. We’ll send the news to your email box, and you don’t have to come to the site unless you want to read columns or see photos.
  3. You can contribute to the health of StrategyPage. A contribution is not a donation that you can deduct at tax time, but a form of crowdfunding. We store none of your information when you contribute..
Subscribe   Contribute   Close