Russia’s military is about to adopt a state-of-the-art aerial bomb, called ‘Drel’, or drill, which can be dropped by a bomber without entering an enemy’s airspace, due to the weapon’s ability to glide for dozens of kilometers.
The head of Russian munitions developer Techmash, Vladimir Lepin, described ‘Drel’ as a “gliding bomb cartridge with a caliber of 500 kilograms, equipment with self-targeting combat elements.”
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The tests of the new bomb began in 2016 and continue in accordance with the program provided by Defense Ministry, which ordered the munition, Lepin told Interfax. ‘Drel’ is planned to be put in service by the Russian Airspace Forces after the successful conclusion of the trails in 2018, he added.
Earlier, Techmash said that their bomb is capable of gliding dozens of kilometers and hit armored vehicles, ground-based radars, command posts and power units of anti-aircraft missile systems with high precision. ‘Drel’ is a cluster ammunition, which ways weighs 540 kilograms and includes 15 self-targeting warheads.