Fri, Dec 28, 2007
30,000-Pound Bomb Reaches Milestone
A team of weapons
specialists has loaded a 20-foot mock bomb into the bomb bay of a
simulated aircraft Dec. 18 at Whiteman Air Force Base. The bomb was
a mock up of the 30,000 pound Massive Ordnance Penetrator, a 30,000
pound bomb that has yet to enter production, and the aircraft was a
mock up of the B-2 Spirit. The MOP is approximately 20.5 feet long,
with a 31.5-inch diameter and a total weight of slightly less than
30,000 pounds. The weapon will carry over 5,300 pounds of explosive
material and will deliver more than 10 times the explosive power of
its predecessor, the BLU-109. It is designed to penetrate up to 200
feet underground before exploding.
"I couldn't help but notice how enormous the bomb was hanging in
the weapons bay," said Tech. Sgt. Jason Hermann, a 509th
Maintenance Group weapons loader.
"It looked much larger once we had loaded it into the weapons
bay than when it was on the loading adapter."
The bomb's development started in 2004 when the Air Force
executed a contract with Boeing for the Pentagon's Defense Threat
Reduction Agency, an agency that safeguards America and its allies
from weapons of mass destruction by providing capabilities to
reduce, eliminate and counter the threat. The weapon is guided by
Global Positioning System navigation. Its cropped wings improve
agility and storable grid fin controls facilitate internal
carriage.
Northrop Grumman started integrating the MOP to the B-2 in July
2007. The B-2 will be able to carry two MOPs, one in each bay,
which will be mounted to the existing forward and aft mounting
hardware currently in the B-2.
"This awesome weapon reeks of strategic deterrence," said Col.
Bob Dulong, the 509th MXG commander. "America's enemies will know
the destructive power of this weapon in our arsenal and they should
modify their behavior, lest they learn of this weapon from
firsthand experience." [ANN Thanks Airman 1st Class Stephen Linch,
509th Bomb Wing Public Affairs]
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