CBU-100 Cluster Bomb

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A CBU-99, foreground, along with an AGM-12B and an AGM-12C. The CBU-99 and CBU-100 are nearly identical.
A CBU-99, foreground, along with an AGM-12B and an AGM-12C. The CBU-99 and CBU-100 are nearly identical.

The CBU-100 Cluster Bomb (also called the Mk-20 Rockeye II) is a cluster bomb which is employed primarily in an anti-tank mode. It carries 247 Mk 118 Mod 0 bomblets.

The antitank bomb cluster is an air-launched, conventional free-fall weapon. The Mk 20, CBU-99, and CBU-100 are used against armored vehicles.

The Mk 20 bomb cluster weighs 490 pounds and contains 247 Mk 118 antitank bombs.

When the Mk 20 bomb cluster is released from the aircraft, the arming wires (primary and/or optional arming) are pulled sufficiently to arm the Mk 339 fuze (and recently the FMU-140 fuze) and release the fins. The positive armed fin release arming wire frees the fin release band, and the movable fins snap open by spring-force. Functioning of the fuze initiates the linear shaped-charges in the dispenser; that cut the dispenser case in half, and disperses the bombs/bomblets. When the Mk 339 Mod 1 primary fuze arming wire is pulled, the fuze will function 1.2 seconds after the arming wire has been extracted. If the pilot selects the option time (4.0 seconds), both the primary and option arming wires must be pulled. If the pilot selects the option time and the primary arming wire is not pulled, the fuze will be a dud.

The bomblet weighs 1.32 pounds and has a 0.4-pound shaped-charge warhead of high explosives, which produces up to 250,000 psi at the point of impact, allowing penetration of approximately 7.5 inches of armor. Rockeye is most efficiently used against area targets requiring penetration to kill. Fielded in 1968, the Rockeye dispenser is also used in the Gator air-delivered mine system. During Desert Storm US Marines used the weapon extensively, dropping 15,828 of the 27,987 total Rockeyes against armor, artillery, and anti-personnel targets. The remainder were dropped by Air Force (5,345) and Navy (6,814) aircraft. [1]