In an operational first, the Air Force has armed the MQ-9 Reaper with the GPS-guided GBU-38 Joint Direct Attack Munition, or JDAM, bomb.
Airmen from the 432nd Wing/432nd Air Expeditionary Wing at Creech Air Force Base and the 26th Weapons Squadron at Nellis Air Force Base — both in Nevada — worked together to outfit the medium-altitude with the GBU-38, according to a release.
That same week, an MQ-9 loaded with a JDAM was used in combat in Operation Inherent Resolve, the Pentagon’s fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, Col. Case Cunningham commander of the 432nd Wing and 432nd Expeditionary Wing at Creech told Military.com on Tuesday.
Although GBU-38 on the Reaper has been in the works for a while — and has been listed a part of the MQ-9’s inventory of weapons — it hasn’t been operational.
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https://www.defensetech.org/2017/05/09/air-force-arms-mq-9-reaper-with-gps-guided-jdam-bomb/?ESRC=airforce-a_170510.nl
