The Russian analogue of the JDAM smart bomb has received the Kometa-M module from the Orlan drone to receive a signal in conditions of countermeasures from electronic warfare means

Russia's military-space forces have been using their own analogue of the smart bomb with the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) kit for many months now. It's only now that more about this development has come to light.

Here's What We Know

In early January 2023, information about the use of Russian smart bombs appeared on social media. The Ukrainian Air Force confirmed this only in April, saying that fighter jets were dropping up to two dozen planning bombs every day. The Russian defence ministry only officially announced their use in May.

A couple of weeks ago, Russian propagandists first published a video that shows the launch of a FAB-500 M62 smart bomb from a Su-34 fighter jet. The footage shows the planning and correction module unfolding its wings to improve accuracy and increase range. But that's all that was known at that point in time.

Now we know that the Russian analogue of the JDAM, which is equipped with a universal planning and correction module, received the Kometa-M unit. It was originally designed for Orlan-type reconnaissance-level unmanned aerial vehicles.

"Kometa-M" is a protected antenna of Russian production. The hardware unit allows drones to fly in the absence of communication and in areas where the enemy can use means of electronic warfare.

The Kometa-M has its own disadvantage. It is that the antenna can cope with no more than three electronic warfare systems. In this regard, the Ukrainian military has learnt to fight Orlan-10 and Orlan-30 drones, for which this unit is designed, as we wrote above.

It is believed that the Russian military started equipping smart bombs with Kometa-M modules not from a good life. The War Zone writes that the main reason for this decision is the impossibility of creating a new system due to the lack of foreign components.

Source: The War Zone