Path: utzoo!utgpu!watserv1!watmath!att!cbnews!military
From: cga66@ihlpy.att.com (Patrick V Kauffold)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: AGM-130
Message-ID: <1990Jul23.201814.5497@cbnews.att.com>
Date: 23 Jul 90 20:18:14 GMT
References: <1990Jul17.031957.22887@cbnews.att.com>
Sender: military@cbnews.att.com (William B. Thacker)
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories
Lines: 51
Approved: military@att.att.com



From: cga66@ihlpy.att.com (Patrick V Kauffold)
>From article <1990Jul17.031957.22887@cbnews.att.com>, by scott%sting.Berkeley.EDU@ (Scott Silvey):
> 
> For the laser designated versions, how does the pilot keep a target
>   designated?  I guess there are a number of laser-designator systems
>   around, so I'm asking about how this is generally done.  Does the
>   pilot have to guide the laser beam by hand using some sort of
>   joystick or does a computer manage to keep the spot tracking the
>   target despite aircraft movement?
>   
>From _Air War Vietnam_ by Drew Middleton:
"A new family of "smart bombs" had been introduced in Southeast Asia
since the bombing halt of 1968. These weapons consisted of Electro-
Optical Guided Bombs (EOGBs) and Laser Guided Bombs (LGBs) in the 2,000
pound and 3,000 pound class. The EOGB was a contrast weapon, similar
in concept to the Walleye first used in 1967 by the Navy.  The EOGB,
however, was a 2000 pound bomb with a small TV camera attached to the
nose which transmitted a picture of what it was viewing to a scope in
the attack aircraft. The pilot would point the aircraft at the target
area thereby allowing the WSO in the rear cockpit of the F-4 to find the
target on the scope, refine the contrast aiming point and designate
the target to the weapon. Once this was accomplished, the pilot would 
release the bomb and quickly depart the target area, leaving the
EOGB to guide itself toward the designated aim point. Target weather
and cloud cover was a factor when delivering EOGBs, but if the
weapon could see the target when it was released from the aircraft
it would usually impact the aim point.

"The LGB was somewhat different. A laser sensor was mated to the nose
of a 2,000 or a 3,000 pound bomb which enabled it to guide itself
toward a target illuminated with low power laser energy.
The problem of illuminating the target with this laser energy was solved
by attaching a pod beneath the fighter aircraft. This pod contained an
optical viewing system and laser emitting capability, both operated by
the WSO in the backseat of the fighter. With this system, the pilot
could point his aircraft toward the target while his WSO optically 
located the precise target aim point and illuminated it with his laser
equipment. The pilot would then release his bombs and depart the target
leaving the LGB to guide itself to the target. An advantage of this
system was that more than one aircraft at a time could drop LGBs on the
same target, with all weapons using the same illumination point to
guide on. Both the EOGB and the LGB resulted in less aircrew exposure
and greater accuracy than conventional weapons. A disadvantage was that
the target had to be continuously illuminated by the laser for the
LGB to be effective.  If clouds obstructed the view of the illuminating
pod the LGB would become an unguided bomb and probably miss the target."

Anyway, that's how they were used in North Viet Nam to drop the Dragon and
other bridges. I think current hardware works about the same way.