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UPAB-1500B

The 1,500-kilogram bomb UPAB-1500B was first shown at the MAKS-2019 exhibition in Russia. Five-meter long and having a diameter of 0.4 meters, the bomb is designed to hit highly protected objects at a range of up to 40 km. Weighing 1,525 kg, the guided bomb carries a 1,010 kg concrete-piercing high-explosive (HE) warhead coupled with a combined navigation unit and a contact fuse with three time delay modes. The munition can be dropped from an altitude of up to 15 km at a range of up to 50 km with a circular error possible (CEP) of up to 10 meters.

The promising guided bomb K029BE / UPAB-1500B-E was developed at the State Research and Production Enterprise "Region" (part of the Corporation "Tactical Missiles") in the second half of the tenth years. The aim of the project was to create a high-precision bomb with an increased drop range, capable of hitting protected ground and surface targets.

In general, the UPAB-1500B-E / K029BE bomb is a modern and effective aviation weapon. Due to the incorporated technical solutions, high performance and wide combat capabilities were obtained. All this has been confirmed during past tests and development. weapons at the landfills. Now the new air bomb gets the opportunity to show its potential in a real operation.

One of the main goals of the UPAB-1500B project was to increase the flight range. Due to the improvement of aerodynamics and other solutions, this parameter was brought up to 50 km. The bomb can be dropped far beyond the enemy's air defense zones, which dramatically reduces the risks for the carrier aircraft.

Important advantages are provided by the combined guidance system. Satellite navigation provides high hitting accuracy, and inertial gives noise immunity. At the same time, the power and power of a heavy warhead to a certain extent compensate for any expected deviation from the aiming point.

The UPAB-1500B product is a large-caliber guided glide bomb capable of hitting small immovable objects with known coordinates with high accuracy. The mass of the bomb reaches 1525 kg, of which 1010 kg falls on the warhead. The bomb is built in a cylindrical body approx. 5 m and 400 mm in diameter. The hull has a solid hemispherical nose fairing and a tapered tail section. Four triangular planes of a folding structure are fixed on the central part of the body. The wing is divided into a fixed part and a console. The latter is located inside the fixed part and moves out after being reset. K029BE is equipped with a combined guidance system based on inertial and satellite navigation. The principle "launched and forgotten" is being implemented; provided immunity to interference. QUO is declared at the level of 10 m.

The main part of the hull is a high-explosive concrete-piercing warhead. There is a contact fuse with three deceleration modes. Depending on the type of target, the detonation is performed on touch or with a specified delay - to destroy buildings from the inside. Barrier penetration parameters are not disclosed.

The warhead of the UPAB-1500B is designed to combat fortified and protected enemy targets. It is able to break through ceilings and undermine inside the structure; it is also possible to apply on surfaces. The concrete-piercing effect is complemented by the large mass of the warhead, and this improves the possible results of the application.

UPAB-1500B is compatible with all major domestic front-line aircraft. It can be carried by multi-role fighters, front-line bombers and attack aircraft. The allowable size of ammunition load depends on the characteristics of the carrier. Dropping the product is allowed in a wide range of carrier speeds from a height of up to 15 km. With optimal release parameters, the bomb can fly up to 50 km.

At the same time, the aerial bomb faces some limitations. So, inertial-satellite correction does not allow you to independently find targets or attack moving objects - K029BE can only deal with stationary targets. In addition, it should be taken into account that a concrete-piercing warhead gives all the desired effects only when attacking protected buildings, and in other situations it is redundant and unprofitable economically. Not in all circumstances it makes sense to use an increased flight range.

On 01 September 2019, the International Aviation and Space Salon finished its work. Boris Obnosov, Director General of JSC KTRV Tactical Missiles Corporation, spoke about scientific and technical achievements and some changes in the corporation to the Military Industrial Courier. " From the 90s to the early 2000s, there was a backlog in the development of guided aircraft weapons. First of all, in the creation of corrected aerial bombs. Thankfully, those days are behind us. At MAKS-2019, the corporation presented adjustable air bombs in three categories: 1500, 500 and 250 kilograms. If we already had certain developments in the first two, then nothing in the last. However, shooting sparrows from a cannon is a thankless and costly business. Therefore, we will continue to master ammunition of a smaller weight category - 100 and 50 kilograms. There have been shifts in the range of this type of weapon. If earlier it was limited, roughly speaking, to 20 kilometers, today, for example, for our 1500 kilogram bombs, it is (in the export version) 50 kilometers, and 500 kilograms - 40 kilometers. This is a solid distance, which allows them to be used outside the air defense zone, to save the lives of pilots and carriers.... Tests of planning bombs K08BE and K029BE (UPAB-1500B-E) are fully completed, products of this type are supplied to combat units."

At the beginning of 2019, the management of the "Region" reported that the UPAB-1500B had successfully passed all the necessary tests and was adopted by the Russian Aerospace Forces. By that time, mass production had begun, and the first batch of products was transferred to the customer. It was also reported that there were export orders, the deliveries of which were supposed to start in 2020. In the same year, the first public demonstration of new weapons took place. Models of the K029BE product and other new developments were presented at the MAKS-2019 salon. In the future, new bombs participated in other domestic exhibitions....

The Ministry of Defense regularly published photographs and videos showing the combat work of the army and the use of modern weapons. Similar materials constantly come from unofficial sources. At the same time, samples of the latest models, used for the first time in a real operation, regularly get into the frame. So, in March 2022, an unofficial photo showing a kind of bomb under the wing of a Russian aircraft was distributed on specialized resources. On its body, the inscription “For the Kuryans!” Was made by hand. Although the marking on the bomb was closed, it was quickly identified as the product UPAB-1500B(-E), also known as K029BE.

On 20 March 2022, the Ministry of Defense published a video dedicated to the combat work of the Hero of Russia, military pilot Viktor Dudin. Together with his comrades, he flies on Su-35S fighters, and the equipment of the unit also got into the frame. On the external suspension of fighters preparing for departures, there were several types of air-to-air missiles and anti-radar Kh-31P. In addition, the UPAB-1500B bomb could be seen again.

Referring to its undisclosed sources, Defense Express says Russia’s first use of the new 1.5-ton UPAB-1500B gliding bomb was recorded “a few weeks ago against one of the objects in Chernihiv Oblast” as the marking on one of the pieces of debris corresponds to UPAB-1500B.