The US Air Force has awarded defense firm Applied Research Associates (ARA) and Boeing a two-year contract to design and prototype the next generation of bunker-busting bombs, designed to be smaller yet more lethal than the one that struck a key Iranian nuclear facility in June. According to a statement by ARA, the company was awarded a 24-month contract by the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Munitions Directorate, to serve as the System Design Agent for the development of a prototype air-to-ground Next Generation Penetrator weapon system.
Boeing, which originally made the BGU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP), will team up with ARA for the new munition. ARA will lead design maturation, while Boeing will drive the tail kit development and support all-up round integration. ARA will also produce and test sub-scale and full-scale prototype munitions.
“This effort will evaluate capabilities against hard and deeply buried targets that pose critical challenges to US national security,” ARA said in a statement. The contract amount was not disclosed. In March 2024, the Air Force issued a request for information from industry for a Next-Generation Penetrator (NGP), seeking concepts for “a prototype penetrator warhead design capable of defeating Hard and Deeply Buried Targets.” (Read More)