Massive Ordnance Penetrator

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MOP being offloaded in preparation for its first explosive test
MOP in tunnel at White Sands Missile Range before its first explosive test

The Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) GBU-57A/B is a project by the U.S. Air Force to develop a massive, precision-guided, 30,000-pound (13,608 kg) "bunker buster" bomb.[1] This is substantially larger than the deepest penetrating bunker buster presently available, the 5,000-pound (2,268 kg) GBU-28.

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[edit] Development

In 2002, Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin were working on the development of a 30,000-lb earth-penetrating weapon, said to be known as "Big BLU", although funding and technical difficulties resulted in the development work being abandoned. Following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, analysis of sites that had been targeted with bunker-buster bombs revealed poor penetration and inadequate levels of destruction.[citation needed] This renewed interest in the development of a super-large bunker-buster, and the MOP project was initiated.

The U.S. Air Force has no specific military requirement for an ultra-large bomb, but it does have a concept for a collection of massively sized penetrator and blast weapons, the so-called "Big BLU" collection, which includes the MOAB (Massive Ordnance Air Burst) bomb. Development of the MOP is now underway at the Air Force Research Laboratory, Munitions Directorate, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. Design and testing work is also being performed by Boeing. It is intended that the bomb will be deployed on the B-2 bomber[2] or B-1 bombers, and will be guided by the use of GPS.

Northrop Grumman announced a $2.5-million stealth-bomber refit contract on July 19, 2007. An undisclosed number of the U.S. Air Force's 20 B-2s will be able to carry two 15-metric-ton MOPs.[3][4]

[edit] Specifications

  • Length: 20.5 feet (6.2 m) [5]
  • Diameter: 31.5 inches (0.8 m) [5]
  • Weight: 30,000 pounds (14 metric tons)
  • Warhead: 5,300 pounds (2.4 metric tons) high explosive
  • Penetration:

[edit] Program status

The initial explosive test of MOP took place on March 14, 2007 in a tunnel belonging to the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) at the White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico. The exact location of the tunnel was not announced, but comparison of a photograph of the site with aerial photography suggests it was at the DTRA Capitol Peak Tunnel Complex in the vicinity of 33°26′24″N 106°27′18″W / 33.440°N 106.455°W / 33.440; -106.455.

On October 6, 2009, ABC News reported that the Pentagon had requested and obtained permission from the U.S. Congress to shift funding in order to accelerate the project.[6][7] It was later announced by the U.S. military that "[f]unding delays and enhancements to the planned test schedule "meant the bomb would not be deployable until December 2010, six months later than the original availability date.[8]


The project has had at least one successful Flight Test MOP launch.[9]

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ B-2/Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) GBU-57A/B. FedBizOpps
  2. ^ Military & Aerospace Electronics, "Air Force ready to deploy 30,000-pound 'super bomb' on stealthy B-2 jet"
  3. ^ Feature—30,000-pound bomb reaches milestone
  4. ^ http://www.irconnect.com/noc/press/pages/news_releases.html?d=123187
  5. ^ a b Massive Ordnance Penetrator Fact Sheet
  6. ^ http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/us-preparing-bomb-iran/story?id=8765343
  7. ^ http://abcnews.go.com/images/Politics/reprogramming_memo_091006.pdf
  8. ^ http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE5BH5IQ20091218
  9. ^ http://www.edwards.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123140373

[edit] External links

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