Saab and Boeing announced at the 2019 Association of the United States Army (AUSA) exposition – held in Washington, DC, on 14–16 October – that their jointly developed Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB) is ready for production.
Saab and Boeing test fired their GLSDB at the Andøya Test Center in Andenes, Norway, on 26 September. (Saab)
The announcement follows the latest test firing of the system at the Andøya Test Center in Andenes, Norway, on 26 September. Saab reported in a 14 October press release that the objective of the firing was to hit a pre-determined target in the sea 130 km away and that the test firing was successful. The flight time was 14 minutes, with an impact angle of 70°.
Saab said the GLSDB was test fired from a custom-made, fully autonomous, 6.1 m container, but that the launcher-independent system can also use an M26 launcher such as HIMARS, the M270, the South Korean Chun-Mu, and naval platforms.
The GLSDB is highly accurate over long ranges and can fly complex trajectories and manoeuvres to strike targets that cannot be hit by conventional direct and indirect fire systems, according to Saab. The system has a range of 150 km and is capable of conducting 360-degree reverse slope engagements and defeating both soft and hardened targets, the Swedish company said.
The mobility of the GLSDB was also tested during NATO exercise ‘Trident Juncture 2018’, held in Norway from 25 October to 23 November last year.
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