PPRuNe Forums

PPRuNe Forums (https://www.pprune.org/)
-   Military Aviation (https://www.pprune.org/military-aviation-57/)
-   -   America's new 2000lb "quicksink" bomb (https://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/649021-americas-new-2000lb-quicksink-bomb.html)

NutLoose 23rd Sep 2022 12:17

America's new 2000lb "quicksink" bomb
 
Trials show it taking down a merchant ship in under 40 seconds. Film in the link, though as they are sinking a ship one would imagine it has been gutted to remove dangerous items, Asbestos and wiring etc, so the internal structure may have been compromised.


The U.S. Air Force has released new and startling footage of a test of its new "Quicksink" anti-ship bomb kit, which adapts a standard 2,000-pound smart bomb for the purpose of targeting and destroying large vessels. It is an inexpensive alternative to a heavyweight torpedo or an anti-ship missile, which deliver the same effect but at much higher cost.

To create Quicksink, the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory started out with a GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), the standard guided-bomb tail kit compatible with all American strike aircraft. In its normal configuration, JDAM uses GPS and inertial navigation to maneuver a standard bomb with enough precision to land within about eight feet of the target. Quicksink adds a smart guidance package and sensors onto the bomb's nose, giving it the ability to home in on a ship-shaped target. The bomb drops beside the ship and detonates underwater, breaking the keel with a massive pressure wave without ever actually striking the hull.

The newly-released video shows the perspective of a camera mounted on a target ship. Almost immediately after detonation, the camera flies off its mount, falls to the deck, and is immersed in the water flooding over the vessel's side - emphasizing the extreme rapidity of the sinking. Based on the timeline in the first video released by the Air Force, the stern section of the target ship went under in about 20 seconds, followed by the bow some 17 seconds later.
https://www.maritime-executive.com/a...hip-in-seconds

melmothtw 23rd Sep 2022 12:19

This happened in May.

MATELO 23rd Sep 2022 12:26

[QUOTE=NutLoose;11301362]Trials show it taking down a merchant ship in under 40 seconds. Film in the link, though as they are sinking a ship one would imagine it has been gutted to remove dangerous items, Asbestos and wiring etc, so the internal structure may have been compromised.

Thanks, missed that.

unmanned_droid 23rd Sep 2022 12:27

Perfecting the art of creating a rapidly expanding hole in the ocean under the middle of a ship.

Not_a_boffin 23rd Sep 2022 12:42

It's only a little ship - and quite an old one too by the looks, subject to a ton of HE going off adjacently, when stationary. That was always going to end badly.

Whether that guidance package could deal with a more realistic target would be an interesting exercise.

Still useful demo should one wish to sink merchant shipping quickly.


Two's in 23rd Sep 2022 12:57

Remembering that real ships are moving targets. I'm sure predictive algorithms are good, but it's not going to be as easy as the demo suggests.

jolihokistix 23rd Sep 2022 13:32

The ROKS Cheonan was taken out by cavitation or something similar.

From Wiki: “The explosion might have created a bubble jet that eventually generated an enormous shock wave and caused the ship to break in two.“

BFSGrad 23rd Sep 2022 14:17

Interesting that the only competitor mentioned the USAF promo is the MK48 torpedo. No mention of anti-ship missiles, which can be launched from sub, surface, and air platforms.

The spirit of Billy Mitchell lives on!

SpazSinbad 23rd Sep 2022 18:52


Originally Posted by BFSGrad (Post 11301428)
Interesting that the only competitor mentioned the USAF promo is the MK48 torpedo. No mention of anti-ship missiles, which can be launched from sub, surface, and air platforms. The spirit of Billy Mitchell lives on!

Here ya go but NO quacksunk :} here:
Video: Royal Navy and US Navy Conduct SINKEX - Naval News
https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news...onduct-sinkex/

Ex ATLANTIC THUNDER RAW Footage Original Video m19179


SpazSinbad 23rd Sep 2022 19:21

[MORE] story: U.K. and U.S. Conduct SINKEX during Atlantic Thunder 22 - Seapower (seapowermagazine.org)
Another story about NORF 'Lantic SankEx: Royal Navy participates in SINKEX – destroying a decommissioned US frigate in the North Atlantic. | Navy Lookout


FakePilot 23rd Sep 2022 19:40


Originally Posted by jolihokistix (Post 11301399)
The ROKS Cheonan was taken out by cavitation or something similar.

From Wiki: “The explosion might have created a bubble jet that eventually generated an enormous shock wave and caused the ship to break in two.“

Ship is less dense than water, hence it floats. Any explosion is going to seek the path of least resistance, which from under a ship is through the ship.

uxb99 23rd Sep 2022 20:41


Originally Posted by FakePilot (Post 11301615)
Ship is less dense than water, hence it floats. Any explosion is going to seek the path of least resistance, which from under a ship is through the ship.

A thing floats when it displaces more water than it weighs. Density has nothing to do with it.

DuncanDoenitz 23rd Sep 2022 21:12


Originally Posted by uxb99 (Post 11301646)
A thing floats when it displaces more water than it weighs. Density has nothing to do with it.

No, it displaces precisely the same amount of water that it weighs. And it can only do that because it is less dense.

golder 23rd Sep 2022 22:02


Originally Posted by Two's in (Post 11301377)
Remembering that real ships are moving targets. I'm sure predictive algorithms are good, but it's not going to be as easy as the demo suggests.

You might want to read about it first, before saying how it works.

RatherBeFlying 23rd Sep 2022 22:41

Taiwan will be ordering a few thousand:E

212man 24th Sep 2022 10:34


Originally Posted by uxb99 (Post 11301646)
A thing floats when it displaces more water than it weighs. Density has nothing to do with it.

Both sentences are incorrect!

Lonewolf_50 24th Sep 2022 21:01

A bit of open source material about JDAM.

I doubt that they would discuss in open source its effectiveness versus moving targets.

Lonewolf_50 24th Sep 2022 21:03


Originally Posted by SpazSinbad (Post 11301610)
[MORE] story:

I can only say, having been on and landed upon a number of Perry class frigates, that it does my heart good to see one of them blown up. We referred to them as the Helen Keller class. The CORT mod was only done on about a dozen, and it did not take long for those to also be retired.

golder 25th Sep 2022 03:56


Originally Posted by Lonewolf_50 (Post 11302144)
A bit of open source material about JDAM.

I doubt that they would discuss in open source its effectiveness versus moving targets.

In one of the videos, it shows the targeting sensor

"Quicksink adds a smart guidance package and sensors onto the bomb's nose, giving it the ability to home in on a ship-shaped target. The bomb drops beside the ship and detonates underwater, breaking the keel with a massive pressure wave without ever actually striking the hull."

SpazSinbad 26th Sep 2022 13:26

USMC Adds More Anti-Ship Munitions To Its Arsenal 26 Sep 2022 Peter Ong "...Two munitions are delivered from tactical aircraft (Harpoon and QUICKSINK).... [Brig. Gen. Joseph Clearfield, Deputy Commander, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Pacific] We got a tactical air, fixed wing, we got two that can sink a ship...." https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news...o-its-arsenal/

golfbananajam 26th Sep 2022 13:48

Isn't this what the RAF did to Tirpitz?

SpazSinbad 26th Sep 2022 13:53

One summary says this: "How was the Tirpitz sunk? It took three years and multiple operations, but in 1944 30 RAF Lancaster bombers armed with Tallboy earthquake bombs finally sunk the Tirpitz. The ship took two bombs, suffered internal explosions and soon capsized. OTHERWISE: German battleship Tirpitz - Wikipedia

langleybaston 26th Sep 2022 14:47


Originally Posted by SpazSinbad (Post 11303008)
One summary says this: "How was the Tirpitz sunk? It took three years and multiple operations, but in 1944 30 RAF Lancaster bombers armed with Tallboy earthquake bombs finally sunk the Tirpitz. The ship took two bombs, suffered internal explosions and soon capsized. OTHERWISE: German battleship Tirpitz - Wikipedia

Ah! But which squadron.

Who has the chunk of Tirpitz in their Mess now?

SpazSinbad 26th Sep 2022 15:44


Originally Posted by langleybaston (Post 11303037)
Ah! But which squadron. Who has the chunk of Tirpitz in their Mess now?

Bit silly don't you think? What has all this got to do with QUICKSINK? Google can answer most questions. YOU look it up.

langleybaston 26th Sep 2022 15:47


Originally Posted by SpazSinbad (Post 11303063)
Bit silly don't you think? What has all this got to do with QUICKSINK? Google can answer most questions. YOU look it up.

Thank you for the suggestion.

superplum 27th Sep 2022 12:40


Originally Posted by langleybaston (Post 11303037)
Ah! But which squadron.

Who has the chunk of Tirpitz in their Mess now?

I believe it should be with IX(B) - I remember hearing about it whilst at Bruggen 87-90.

SASless 27th Sep 2022 13:08

It was reported in July 2005 that the US Navy using an F/A 18 and a JDAM bomb scored hits within two meters of a moving "Land" target.

If you can hit a moving Truck or Tank I have to think hitting a Ship is entirely feasible.

How you achieve a "near miss" on purpose might be the harder part of the problem.

However....if you "miss" and actually "hit" the ship with a 2,000 pound bomb....that alone is gong to cause the ship a serious Damage Control exercise that may or. may not be successful.

So why the debate about whether said bomb will work or not if employed in combat?

Would we be. having the same discussion if it had been the RN and the F-35?

golder 27th Sep 2022 13:16


Originally Posted by SASless (Post 11303571)
It was reported in July 2005 that the US Navy using an F/A 18 and a JDAM bomb scored hits within two meters of a moving "Land" target.

If you can hit a moving Truck or Tank I have to think hitting a Ship is entirely feasible.

How you achieve a "near miss" on purpose might be the harder part of the problem.

However....if you "miss" and actually "hit" the ship with a 2,000 pound bomb....that alone is gong to cause the ship a serious Damage Control exercise that may or. may not be successful.

So why the debate about whether said bomb will work or not if employed in combat?

Would we be. having the same discussion if it had been the RN and the F-35?

I think you are referring to the radar mode GMTI. The moving target targeting is done by the weapon sensor. It can also be a standoff weapon with glide kit

SASless 27th Sep 2022 14:14

The USAF conducted a test on a moving Freighter....barely moving and certainly not maneuvering ship.....but certainly devastating results.

I looked back through the Thread and did not see this video listed....if it is a repeat my apologies.



Donkey497 1st Oct 2022 20:24

A sudden hole appearing under the ship is a very effective way to create a hell of an amount of damage, and unfortunately can and does happen naturally all the time. The deciding factor appears to be two converging wave patterns and what determines the damage is related to the how the basic wavelength of each pattern relates to the size of the ship and where the convergence takes place on the ship.

My old man [Marine Chief Engineer] had very personal experience of this in the south pacific in transit from Fiji back to Oz on his BP Tanker in the early '80's. One quiet sunday morning, about half way back to Sydney, in his words - they fell into a hole in a nearly flat calm ocean which broke piping off from the fo'csle all the way back to the pump room justb ahead of the accomodation and in the engine room broke all three of the auxiliary "Percy Paxman" diesels and their attached generators free from their bases, wrecking the coupling on the running unit. The main engine mounting plate got cracked and the bow plating got split so badly he had to weld shut some watertight doors until they were able to limpback into port in Oz as none of the pumps on board coul keep up with the flooding rate. It took a fortnight's work in Sydney to get the ship fit for travel to Keppel in Singapore where they had another three week's in dry dock to repair the worst of the damage. His take on it was that if they'd been hit slightly further back, he'd have been lucky to have been paddling.

His bright side was that he did manage to get across the Sydney Harbour bridge a couple of times without having to pay the toll and he developed a liking for a particular restaurant in Singapore that he was very disappointed to learn, years later from me that it was now a block of flats after I visited for my work.

SpazSinbad 2nd Oct 2022 00:40

Regarding the BIG BUBBLE Maker - hope this helps. Underwater Explosions

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....38c2d44a0f.gif


fltlt 4th Oct 2022 21:33


Originally Posted by golder (Post 11303579)
I think you are referring to the radar mode GMTI. The moving target targeting is done by the weapon sensor. It can also be a standoff weapon with glide kit

Way back when, I was involved in the testing to determine why the guided munitions were falling short on moving targets in theater. Spent time at Fallon on the range, with two F 18’s circling overhead, then trying to hit an autonomous Nissan Sentra performing a long run along the wreck runway, with a turn at each end.
Video and stills have been on the web for a number of years. Kairos Autonomi is the old company website (nothing to do with me personally) then click on media, scroll down, you will see one of my favorite photos, an LGTR, 5 ft above the ground, behind the target.
There are a couple of videos of it as well.

SpazSinbad 4th Oct 2022 23:23

58 Mb: http://vid.kairosautonomi.com/videos..._480_Large.wmv

http://www.kairosautonomi.com/upload...edropstill.jpg

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....f4e29bd26a.jpg

golder 4th Oct 2022 23:44


Originally Posted by fltlt (Post 11308068)
Way back when, I was involved in the testing to determine why the guided munitions were falling short on moving targets in theater. Spent time at Fallon on the range, with two F 18’s circling overhead, then trying to hit an autonomous Nissan Sentra performing a long run along the wreck runway, with a turn at each end.
Video and stills have been on the web for a number of years. Kairos Autonomi is the old company website (nothing to do with me personally) then click on media, scroll down, you will see one of my favorite photos, an LGTR, 5 ft above the ground, behind the target.
There are a couple of videos of it as well.

Thanks for sharing laser guided weapon.. I went to the website
Kairos Autonomi: Multimedia - Existing Vehicle Autonomy for Unmanned Ground Vehicles


This is the sensor for the quicksink
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zon...tails-revealed
AFRL has now confirmed that the Quicksink seeker, the model of which is seen below, is a dual-mode system that combines a radar seeker with an imaging infrared (IIR) camera

The combination of the new multi-mode seeker and the JDAM tail kit turns the bomb into an all-weather anti-ship weapon. When employed, the weapon uses the tail kit to first glide to the general target area, using coordinates inputted prior to launch from the launch aircraft via onboard sensors or from an off-board sensing platform. Once it approaches the target area, the weapon then shifts to the Quicksink seeker to locate the target ship and determine its speed and heading. The use of an independent seeker system means that weapon could potentially still lock onto the target if it appears within the envelope of the radar and IIR camera, even in a GPS-degraded environment that imposes limits on the initial cueing.


https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....0bb3c02f7c.jpg


fltlt 5th Oct 2022 03:21


Originally Posted by golder (Post 11308112)
Thanks for sharing laser guided weapon.. I went to the website
Kairos Autonomi: Multimedia - Existing Vehicle Autonomy for Unmanned Ground Vehicles


This is the sensor for the quicksink
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zon...tails-revealed
AFRL has now confirmed that the Quicksink seeker, the model of which is seen below, is a dual-mode system that combines a radar seeker with an imaging infrared (IIR) camera

The combination of the new multi-mode seeker and the JDAM tail kit turns the bomb into an all-weather anti-ship weapon. When employed, the weapon uses the tail kit to first glide to the general target area, using coordinates inputted prior to launch from the launch aircraft via onboard sensors or from an off-board sensing platform. Once it approaches the target area, the weapon then shifts to the Quicksink seeker to locate the target ship and determine its speed and heading. The use of an independent seeker system means that weapon could potentially still lock onto the target if it appears within the envelope of the radar and IIR camera, even in a GPS-degraded environment that imposes limits on the initial cueing.


https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....0bb3c02f7c.jpg

The two F 18’s we had overhead for the tests missed the first few times, then noticed that the target slowed down at each end in the turn. So they decided they had a better chance there. In one of the videos, you see the Sentra disappear of the left side of the screen, followed by the noise of jet engines, then the terminal noise of the LGTR, then wait, wait, wait, did they hit it, nope, Sentra emerges.
The last round they had managed to stop the vehicle, from the range tower through the big eyes, the round dropped short, but closer than the previous ones had been, the vehicle continued for a few feet, then stopped dead in its tracks.
When we finally got out there to where it was, turned out tthat when the LGTR hit, it was probably a couple of feet behind, the small charge went off, and between ground dislodged by the initial impact, further displaced by the charge, being directly in line with the exhaust pipe of the vehicle, it was sufficient to plug the last four inches or so, which in turn explained why it only went so far, then stopped abruptly.
A true soft kill.


All times are GMT. The time now is 18:06.


Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.