GBU-72

The Guided Bomb Unit‐72 (GBU‐72), also known as the Advanced 5K (A5K) Penetrator, is a bunker busting bomb developed in the United States.

The GBU-72 is described as a 5,000 lb (2,300 kg) class precision-guided bunker-busting bomb which uses a JDAM guidance kit.

The GBU-72 is said to resemble an enlarged GBU-31/B JDAM fitted with a bunker-busting BLU-109 or BLU-137/B warhead. It is fitted with the GBU-31/B JDAM’s GPS and INS tail-mounted guidance kit and has long fins on either side of the bomb's underside.

No official data is available for how deep the GBU-72 can penetrate before exploding, although the weapon's program manager has been quoted as saying that its "lethality is expected to be substantially higher compared to similar legacy weapons like the GBU-28". The capabilities of the later versions of the GBU-28 remain classified, but the earliest versions could reportedly penetrate 150 ft (46 m) of earth and more than 15 ft (4.6 m) of reinforced concrete.

The GBU-72 can be dropped by the US Air Force's B-1Bs and F-15Es, and the Israeli Air Force's F-15Is.

More info:

• Air Force Mil - Release of GBU-72