Boeing to upgrade long-range jamming-resistant glide bombs for Ukraine: report – Firstpost

Advanced ground-launched long-range small diameter bombs (GLSDBs) supplied by the United States to Ukraine face significant challenges in hitting their targets due to sophisticated Russian electronic jamming techniques.

Despite Boeing's claims of the “highly jam-resistant” GPS navigation system, these bombs have struggled to maintain accuracy despite advanced electronic countermeasures deployed by Russian forces, according to The Eurasian era. This situation posed another difficulty facing Ukrainian forces in using some of the latest military technologies in a highly contested electronic warfare environment.

Reportedly, the problem is not limited to GLSDBs, as even other Western-supplied weapons have reportedly experienced significant failures under similar conditions. The bomb was jointly manufactured by SAAB AB and Boeing, and it was under development well before Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Jamming occurs when huge amounts of energy are broadcast into an area, overwhelming a device's signal. Russia has used this tactic on Ukrainian radios, drones and even GPS-guided 155-millimeter Excalibur artillery munitions. Ukraine has been using GLSDBs since the beginning of the year and experts have noted that they do not perform well on the battlefield due to jamming.

Russia's jamming of modern Western weapons guidance systems has significantly eroded Ukraine's ability to defend its territory. This challenge has prompted Kiev officials to urgently seek help from the Pentagon in obtaining improved weapons from arms manufacturers.

Ukraine received these long-range munitions at the beginning of February, in particular ground-launched small diameter bombs (GLSDB), after asking the authorities for months to strengthen its capabilities to strike strategic targets, notably those in Crimea. The delivery was initially considered significant, with military analysts predicting that the weapons could force Russia to move its supplies away from the front lines.

However, Russian efforts to block the guidance systems of these bombs have significantly compromised their effectiveness, according to reports.

Previously, the United States was not interested in providing Ukraine with long-range missiles, fearing that these could be used to target deep into Russian territory, which could escalate the conflict. Later, medium-range missiles, with a range of about 160 kilometers (100 miles), were supplied by the United States in October last year.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday secured a promise from Spain of additional air defense missiles to help combat the nearly 3,000 bombs he says Russia is dropping on Ukraine every month in the third year of war.

Kharkiv's advance has further strained the already exhausted Ukrainian army, which in recent months has fought off the intense Russian offensive in the partially occupied eastern region of Donetsk. Zelensky said Sunday that the Kremlin army was assembling at another location in Russia, further north but close to the roughly 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line, in a bid to stretch the army exhausted Ukrainian and to break its resistance in the region.

Zelensky and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez signed a bilateral security agreement that allocates 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) in military aid to Ukraine in 2024 and 5 billion euros ($5.4 billion) by 2027. Other Leopard tanks and artillery munitions are also included in the deal. wrap.

Ukraine has repeatedly tried to strike behind Russian lines, often with drones, although Russia's response to new technology used in unmanned vehicles has improved in recent months.

With the contribution of agencies.