How do glide bombs help Russia gain an advantage?

(Dan Tri) – The conflict is still fierce, but Russia has regained its advantage over Ukraine.

Russian Su-34 fighter jet (Photo: Telegram).

The Russian tactical air force was in serious crisis

Since the outbreak of the conflict in 2022, experts have analyzed why the Russian tactical air force is `obsessed` with using conventional bombs (FAB) to carry out its missions

The reason is that Russia has very few guided bombs (KABs). Russian KABs are fully produced with complex guidance mechanisms, so they are expensive and cannot be produced in large quantities.

Because there are not many KABs, modern Russian 4+ generation aircraft such as the Su-34 or Su-35 must use FABs, flying low over the target to drop bombs or dive to cut off bombs, causing many

In the later stages, to reduce losses, the Russian Air Force had to reduce the number of ground support missions, and at one stage at the end of 2022, they barely conducted sorties.

Fire support from the air is less effective, making the role of Russian tactical air force increasingly reduced, surprising observers.

Although they have achieved an absolute advantage in air combat, they are very weak in ground support and cannot suppress Ukrainian anti-aircraft fire.

This also causes Russia’s ground combat operations to rely only on artillery support and as a result, its equipment advantage cannot be effectively promoted.

A Russian Su-34 multi-role fighter-bomber was shot down by Ukrainian air defense (Photo: Getty Images).

The relive`

Starting in late 2023, Moscow forces began to regain the advantage.

At this time, the situation on the front suddenly changed, and Kiev forces fell into great chaos and crisis.

The `change in the wind` was not because Russian soldiers suddenly became brave, nor was it a major change in fighting style, but two years after the conflict broke out, the Russian Air Force was finally able to provide support

So how did the Russian Air Force miraculously `revive`?

With the popularity of the UMPK, Russian aircraft can use the large number of FABs still in stock to support ground combat forces that are having difficulty facing the enemy’s defensive fortresses.

Although Moscow’s artillery fire completely overwhelmed Kiev’s, the limited power of the artillery shells did not cause much impact on the enemy’s fortified fortifications.

Ukraine’s `nightmare` begins?

In this context, the UMPK glider module appeared in early 2023 and was first used on the 500kg FAB-500 M62.

However, the design of the UMPK module has a lot of creativity.

Because this technology is still rudimentary, the Western media `wearing tinted glasses` initially believed that this was just a set of glider wings, helping bombs fly far in a glider style, but had no guidance function.

But in fact, the UMPK module not only functions to turn the FAB into a glider, but also uses the GLONASS satellite navigation system to control the rudder, bringing it precisely to the target.

Russian Su-34 fighter jet bombs Ukrainian target (Source: Russian Defense Ministry).

The UMPK module helps the FAB 500kg flight range up to about 70km and is also very simple to use.

Directional control now relied on the rear ailerons, controlled by the differential.

However, the limitations of this Russian UMPK guidance kit can also be clearly observed, which is that the module is arranged to `hug` the outside of the bomb into a separate block, destroying the original aerodynamic shape.

Unlike the American JDAM, the guidance module is pre-assembled at the factory, while the Russian UMPK glide bomb is assembled right at the airport.

Bombs using the UMPK module initially have no connection or data exchange between the UMPK module and the aircraft carrying the bomb, so they can only attack the target according to the coordinates pre-loaded into the UMPK module, before

By the end of 2023, the UMPK kit will gradually be completed and begin to be widely used. At this time, loading bomb coordinates can be done from the pilot using the weapon on the Su-34 and target coordinates can be changed.

How do glide bombs help Russia gain an advantage?

The Russian tactical air force was finally able to conduct large-scale battlefield support operations and the battlefield balance quickly tilted in favor of Russia.

During the Avdiivka campaign, in the early days of February 2024, there was a day when Russian aircraft dropped up to 100 guided bombs with UMPK modules on Ukrainian positions, causing heavy damage to the enemy.

Compared to the victory of the Bakhmut campaign, in which the Russian Army used almost entirely artillery fire, the Avdiivka campaign was much easier, with fewer casualties even though the city had no less fortified fortifications.

Not only using 250kg and 500kg bombs, Russia also recently used 1,500kg bombs also equipped with UMPK modules, even Russian thermobaric bombs and cluster bombs also use guidance modules.

Su-34 fighter jet and some types of glide bombs fitted with UMPK modules (Photo: Telegram).

Blockbuster bombs are a real nightmare for Ukrainian ground forces because they can destroy life force within a radius of 200 meters or destroy a solid reinforced concrete building with just one hit.

Large-scale use of UMPK modules allows Russian warplanes to drop bombs far from the front lines.

As a result, several of Kiev’s valuable long-range air defense missile systems were destroyed in fierce long-range missile salvos, which further degraded their air defense capabilities and allowed the

However, perhaps the demand on the battlefield was too high, leading to insufficient supply.

This extremely cheap and simple device is changing the landscape of the Russia-Ukraine battlefield.