The United States of America allocated defense aid to Ukraine in the amount of 7.9 billion dollars. JSOW (Joint Standoff Weapon) winged aerial bombs became part of the record package. The States will hand them over to Ukraine for the first time, Freedom reports.
Almost 2.5 billion dollars. from the US aid package will be used to purchase weapons from international companies. The funds are planned to be spent in the coming months. They will be spent on an additional Patriot air defense battery, other air defense assets, drones, armored personnel carriers, ammunition and other weapons, including JSOW cruise bombs. 375 million dollars were allocated for them.
“I am announcing an increase in security assistance to Ukraine and a series of additional actions that will help Ukraine win this war. To increase Ukraine's ability to carry out long-range strikes, I decided to provide Ukraine with a long-range Joint Standoff Weapon, — said US President Joe Biden, whose statement was published on the White House website.
AGM-154 JSOW are intended for use against poorly protected targets, such as light armored vehicles and trucks, aircraft on airfields, and anti-aircraft missile systems. According to military experts, the range of use of aerial bombs will allow the Armed Forces of Ukraine to effectively destroy Russian front-line warehouses of ammunition and fuel and lubricants, to hit enemy positions, communication nodes and manpower.
200% Deposit Bonus up to €3,000 180% First Deposit Bonus up to $20,000“One of the advantages of the AGM 154 JSOW is the high accuracy of guidance, especially when it comes to geolocated static targets. Also, the ammunition has an infrared homing head, invulnerable to radio frequency interference. In addition, this planning bomb is inconspicuous to air defense, so it is almost impossible to shoot it down. For an analogue of the Russian KAB — of an adjustable air bomb — AGM-154 JSOW is a rather expensive ammunition. Depending on the modification, its price is 300 thousand dollars. and significantly higher”, — writes “ArmyInform”.
Taking into account the cost, the number of JSOW that the US can transfer to Ukraine cannot be proportional in number to the Russian KAB, the publication notes. Not to mention that Washington has a limited number of aerial bombs. JSOW procurement was discontinued in 2015.
“According to the data, as of 2015, 2,517 units of JSOW were produced, of which 1,983 were for the US Navy and 523 for the Air Force, and the total production plan for these munitions was 3,334 units. Also, from this figure, the number of JSOW that was used in combat operations, primarily during the war in Yugoslavia, Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as exercises, should be subtracted. It is estimated that about 400 JSOW were expended in total. Thus, it can be assumed that there may be more than 2,000 JSOW units in the US”, — says the Defense Express publication.
The so-called American anti-aircraft missiles of the ZSU will be launched from F-16 fighters. The JSOW range will allow Ukrainian pilots to stay at a safe distance from the front line, beyond the reach of Russian air defense.
And the number of F-16-trained pilots will increase next year. US President Joe Biden instructed the Pentagon to expand the training program for 18 pilots. Earlier in September, it became known that the first group of Ukrainian pilots began theoretical training on F-16 fighter jets in Romania, and may proceed to practical training in the next few months.