Bomb contract for Boeing

Boeing has been awarded the second phase of a $27m US Air Force contract for the Small Diameter Bomb I Focused Lethality Munition (SDB I FLM).

During the $17.7 million second phase, Boeing will integrate the FLM warhead into the SDB I weapon, perform a series of ground and flight tests, and manufacture a limited number of FLM weapons.

‘FLM is a significant advancement in low-collateral damage weaponry,’ said Boeing SDB Program Manager Dan Jaspering. ‘It will allow the warfighter to hit a lot of targets while minimising the area of potential damage surrounding them.’

The FLM warhead, developed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the US Air Force Research Laboratory, features an advanced, multi-phase blast explosive and a composite carbon fibre warhead case, allowing for pinpoint strikes with low collateral damage.

The weapons are slated for flight-testing in August 2007. Boeing will deliver the first 50 weapons for operational assessment in January 2008, with the air force potentially procuring as many as 450 SDB I FLM units through to 2012.