| Is Missile: | yes |
| DRDO Glide Bomb / Gaurav Bomb | |
| Origin: | India |
| Type: | Smart Glide bomb[1] [2] |
| Designer: | G. Satheesh Reddy, Research Centre Imarat (DRDO) |
| Manufacturer: |
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| Design Date: | 2014–present |
| Variants: | Gaurav (Winged), Gautham (Non-Winged) |
| Weight: | Gaurav - 1000kg (2,000lb) Gautham - 550kg (1,210lb) |
| Length: | 4.0 m |
| Diameter: | 0.62 m |
| Vehicle Range: | Gaurav (Winged) - 100km (100miles) Gautham (Non-winged) - 30km (20miles) |
| Altitude: | 10 km |
| Filling: | CL-20 (fragmentation, cluster munition, PCB)[3] |
| Guidance: | Mid-course: Inertial navigation system with GPS/NavIC satellite guidance Terminal: Semi-active laser homing[4] |
| Launch Platform: | Sukhoi Su-30 MKI |
| Detonation: | Contact and proximity fuze |
The DRDO Glide Bomb is a product of the Defence Research and Development Organisation to deploy a standardised medium range precision guided weapon, especially for engagement of targets from outside the range of standard anti-aircraft defenses, thereby increasing aircraft survivability and minimising friendly losses. The development was carried out by Research Centre Imarat whereas ots production-cum-development partner includes Adani Defence and Bharat Forge.
The bomb was designed by the nodal Laboratory Research Centre Imarat[5] in Hyderabad with the help of the Defence Avionics Research Establishment (DARE) in Bengaluru, Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory (TBRL) in Chandigarh and Armaments Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) in Pune.[1] [2] The team designed the bomb specially for the Indian Air Force to fulfill their requirement for precision guided weapons.[1] [2]
Under the DRDO's Long Range Glide Bomb (LRGB) project, 2 variants have been planned:
The length of both bombs is 4 meters and the diameter of both bombs is 0.62 m.Both bombs have onboard inertial navigation system with GPS and NaVIC Satellite Guidance System.
The DRDO and the Indian Air Force (IAF) successfully tested a 1,000 kg glide bomb on 19 December 2014 that covered a range of 100 km, guided through its on-board navigation system. The flight path is of the glide bomb was monitored by DRDO radars and electro-optic systems situated at Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur.[7] On 17 August 2018, the IAF and DRDO did a covert successful trial of Gautham and Gaurav at Pokhran firing range, Jaisalmer.[8]
DRDO and IAF successfully tested the Long Range Bomb (LRB) on 29 October 2021 from Su-30MKI at Balasore, Odisha. The bomb was released from 10 km altitude which successfully hit a sea based target using laser guidance. It is a 1,000 kg bomb which DRDO developed as an alternative to the Spice 2000. The LRGB is part of a family of newly developed precision guided munitions with a range of 50 km to 150 km in range.[9] [10]
On 14 August 2024, Gaurav glode bomb was successfully tested from Su-30MKI a hit the target at Abdul Kalam Island with pinpoint accuracy. The trajectory and performance was monitored by Telemetry and Electro-optical tracking systems deployed by Integrated Test Range.[11] [12] [13]