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EDO corporation awarded contract for 34 BRU-57s
March 24, 2004 (by
Lieven Dewitte) -
EDO Corporation has been awarded a $6.3 million "Foreign Military Sale" contract for 34 production-phase BRU-57 bomb-release units on F-16 aircraft. Deliveries are expected to be completed by 2006.
Under the Foreign Military Sales program, U.S. defense contractors, such as EDO, sell defense equipment indirectly to foreign governments through U.S. Government contracting agencies. This contract's foreign-government customer is not being disclosed.
The BRU-57 is a multiple-weapons carriage system that is capable of integrating the latest technology munitions known as "smart weapons." The BRU-57 enables individual targeting and release of each weapon. The U.S. Air Force has ordered approximately 400 BRU-57 units to date.
Compared to the previously used TER-3 triple ejector rack, it has advantages of interfacing with smart weapons, higher reliability and maintainability, and greater safety with lower potential for collision of weapons during release.
The BRU-57 has two stations, each with MIL-STD-1760 interfaces for smart weapons so flight and targeting data can be transferred to the weapon immediately prior to release. The F-16 now will be able to carry four, instead of two, 1,000-pound class smart weapons, thus doubling its "smart weapon" capacity.
The U.S. Air Force recently certified use of the Lockheed Martin CBU- 103/104/105/107 Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser series using the BRU-57 on its fleet of Block 40/42/50/52 F-16 aircraft. Certification of the AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) is expected to be completed late this year. The rack is also compatible with 500-pound and 1,000-pound Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs).
The F-16 is the first aircraft to use the BRU-57. The BRU-57 contains two BRU-46 ejector units already used in the U.S. Air Force inventory.
The BRU-57 is a multiple-weapons carriage system that is capable of integrating the latest technology munitions known as "smart weapons." The BRU-57 enables individual targeting and release of each weapon. The U.S. Air Force has ordered approximately 400 BRU-57 units to date.
Compared to the previously used TER-3 triple ejector rack, it has advantages of interfacing with smart weapons, higher reliability and maintainability, and greater safety with lower potential for collision of weapons during release.
The BRU-57 has two stations, each with MIL-STD-1760 interfaces for smart weapons so flight and targeting data can be transferred to the weapon immediately prior to release. The F-16 now will be able to carry four, instead of two, 1,000-pound class smart weapons, thus doubling its "smart weapon" capacity.
The U.S. Air Force recently certified use of the Lockheed Martin CBU- 103/104/105/107 Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser series using the BRU-57 on its fleet of Block 40/42/50/52 F-16 aircraft. Certification of the AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) is expected to be completed late this year. The rack is also compatible with 500-pound and 1,000-pound Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs).
The F-16 is the first aircraft to use the BRU-57. The BRU-57 contains two BRU-46 ejector units already used in the U.S. Air Force inventory.
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