The GBU-75 Joint Direct Attack Munition Long Range (JDAM LR) program, jointly operated by the US Air Force and US Navy, has been cleared to enter initial production.
The milestone follows a $75-million undefinitized contract action awarded to Boeing to manufacture the JDAM LR’s BSU-111/B Payload Delivery Units for the US Navy, providing pilots with a long-range standoff strike capability.
It comes about four months after the JDAM LR completed two initial flight tests in California in April, as well as Boeing’s nearly $100-million internal investment in developing the weapon.
“This first production contract is a major milestone for the JDAM LR program, demonstrating our ability to deliver long-range precision-strike capability at a significantly lower cost,” said Bob Ciesla, VP of Boeing Precision Engagement Systems.
JDAM LR
The JDAM LR builds on the JDAM family of guidance kits that convert unguided bombs into precision-guided munitions, where it is deployed for conventional land and naval strikes, as well as maritime aerial-mining missions.
JDAM LR can travel at distances greater than 300 nautical miles (556 kilometers/345 miles) — more than seven times the maximum range of the JDAM extended-range variant at 40 nautical miles (74 kilometers/46 miles) — while carrying a 500-pound-class (226-kilogram) payload.
It is designed to integrate with any aircraft already certified to carry baseline JDAM conventional precision-guided weapons, including tactical platforms like the US Navy’s F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and strategic bombers like the US Air Force’s B-52 Stratofortress.
Boeing is now preparing manufacturing space for the JDAM LR at its St. Charles, Missouri, facility while continuing qualification and aircraft integration activities ahead of the weapon’s initial fielding.
