Russia revamps warfare with glide bombs based on Ukraine experience, revealed in new footage
9:20 PM EST, January 12, 2024
The UMPK set is a rougher equivalent to the American JDAM-ER conversion kit, which also metamorphoses freely falling conventional bombs into guided glide bombs.
However, in the Russian edition, this solution occasionally malfunctions and inadvertently releases a bomb, an issue that recently culminated in the unintentional bombing of Belgorod.
Many types of Russian aerial bombs have been exhibited alongside the UMPK set. It has also been produced for large FAB-1500-54 bombs.
Although initial information about these upgraded capabilities of old weaponry emerged in September 2023, the Russians have only recently disclosed a film. This showcases the manufacturing of large bombs capable of harboring almost 1554 pounds of explosive charge.
Due to its significant dimensions and weight, this novel weapon will only be compatible with a few aircraft - probably limited to the Su-24 and Su-34, each carrying one bomb of this nature on the under-fuselage pylon.
Lack of Machinery Equals Lack of Weapons
The Ukrainians have scrutinized a video released by the Russians displaying the fabrication of heavy bombs. Defense Express, a service, notes that the Russians have also unintentionally revealed their production equipment - Chinese machine tools from the Haitian Precision brand and Japanese Okuma machinery.
Access to such machines is currently of critical importance for Russia. The Russian industry, largely stagnant since World War II, doesn't independently manufacture enough suitably precise machine tools to meet military needs.
Consequently, Russia's weaponry production capacity is reliant on foreign machinery. Despite sanctions curtailing the export of Western machine tools to Russia, they continue to import them from China and have also contrived means to acquire Japanese equipment.
