Supersonic SDB Drop

An F-22 test pilot with the 411th Flight Test Squadron at Edwards AFB, California, carried out the first supersonic release of a GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb, or SDB, on 11 July. This first supersonic SDB drop was part of a safe separation test program currently being performed to integrate the weapon on the F-22. The GBU-39 is a 250-pound Global Positioning System-guided precision munitions capable of destroying stationary targets at standoff distances. Eight prior SDB releases from the F-22 were carried out at subsonic speeds. Additional supersonic releases and later guided drops will take place on the Edwards ranges. The Raptor can carry eight SDBs or two 1,000-pound GBU-32 Joint Direct Attack Munitions internally.