South Korean CBU-105 Bomb Deal in Prospect

The Republic of Korea Air Force is looking to acquire hundreds of CBU-105 bombs from the United States.

The potential deal, with a value of $325m, would see 367 of Textron Defense Systems' sensor-fused weapons supplied to South Korea.

Also to be supplied within the same contract would be 35 missiles and it's expected they'll all be used to configure the RoKAF's KAI FA-50 combat aircraft. This design hasn't yet entered service but is scheduled to join the RoKAF next year and it's an advanced upgrade of the same manufacturer's T-50 Golden Eagle trainer, as used by the country's national display team, the Black Eagles.

The Republic of Korea Air Force is set to take on as many as 150 FA-50s, introducing them as a replacement for its fleet of venerable US-built F-5E Tiger IIs.

South Korean CBU-105 Deal

Details of this South Korean CBU-105 deal were released by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency in early June 2012.

"The Republic of Korea intends to use these weapons to modernise its armed forces and enhance its capability to defeat a wide range of enemy defences including fortifications, armoured vehicles and maritime threats", the agency explained in a statement.

"Additionally, the munition's precision and low failure rate will reduce incidents of fratricide and increase overall effectiveness."

CBU-105 Sensor-Fused Bomb

The CBU-105 sensor-fused bomb is a 1,000 pound weapon that scatters an array of 10 BLU-108 submunitions, all of them equipped with four warheads. Laser-guided, it's an upgraded version of the CBU-97, twinned with the Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser.

After the CBU-105's been dropped, its 40 projectiles each scan a 1,500 foot-wide area on the ground, prior to acquiring their target. If no target is located, the projectiles should explode 15 metres above the surface and, according to Textron, this process is more than 99 per cent reliable.

The CBU-105 bomb already equips the US, UAE, Omani, Indian and Turkish armed forces. Now, it's in prospect that South Korea will join this list and Armed Forces International will report on further developments in future News coverage.

Image copyright US Navy - used solely for representational purposes