The BLU-82B/C-130 weapon system, known under programme “Commando Vault” and nicknamed “daisy cutter

A daisy cutter is a type of Fuse designed to detonate a bomb at or above ground level. The fuse itself is a long probe affixed to the weapon’s nose, which detonates the bomb if it touches the ground or any solid object….
” in Vietnam

The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina Wars, the Vietnam Conflict, or often in Vietnam the American War occurred in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia from 1959 to April 30, 1975….
and in Afghanistan

The War in Afghanistan, which began on October 7, 2001 as the U.S. military operation Operation Enduring Freedom, was launched by the United States with the United Kingdom in response to the September 11, 2001 attacks….
, is a 15,000 pound (6,800kg) conventional bomb

A bomb is any of a range of explosive devices that typically rely on the exothermic chemical reaction of an explosive material to produce an extremely sudden and violent release of energy….
, delivered from an MC-130 transport aircraft. 225 were constructed.

Overview

Originally designed to create an instant clearing in the jungles of Vietnam, it was test-dropped there from a CH-54 Tarhe

The CH-54 Tarhe is a twin-engine heavy-lift helicopter designed by Sikorsky Aircraft for the United States Army. It is named after Tarhe , an eighteenth-century chief of the Wyandot Native Americans in the United States tribe….
“Flying crane” helicopter. Later it has been used in Afghanistan as an anti-personnel weapon and as an intimidation weapon because of its very large lethal radius (variously reported as 100 to 300 meters/300 to 900 feet) combined with a visible flash and audible sound at long distances. It was the largest conventional bomb for several decades. That title is now held by the Russian-made Father of All Bombs

Aviation Thermobaric Bomb of Increased Power , nicknamed “Father of All Bombs” , is a Russian-made bomber thermobaric weapon that is reportedly four times more powerful than the Military of the United States GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb ….
, which contains 7.8 tons of high explosives, although both these weapons were outstripped in weight and size by the T12 Cloud Maker

The T-12 demolition bomb was a weapon produced by the United States designed to create an Earth_quake_bomb. It achieved this by having an extremely thick nose section, which was designed to penetrate deeply into the earth….
penetration or earthquake bomb developed from the British Grand Slam bomb

The Grand Slam was a 22,000 Pound earth quake bomb used by RAF Bomber Command against strategic targets during the World War II.It was a scaled up version of the Tallboy bomb and closer to the original size that the bomb inventor Barnes Wallis had envisaged when he first developed his earthquake bomb idea….
of World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a Participants in World War II, including all of the great powers, organised into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War II and the Axis powers….
. The T12 weighed 43,600 lb, almost twenty metric tons.

The BLU-82 uses conventional explosive ammonium nitrate

The chemical compound ammonium nitrate, the nitrate of ammonia with the chemical formula NitrogenHydrogen4NitrogenOxygen3, is a white powder at room temperature and standard pressure….
and aluminium

Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white and ductile member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al; its atomic number is 13….
, incorporating both agent and oxidizer. In contrast, fuel-air explosives (FAE) consist only of an agent and a dispersing mechanism, and take their oxidizers from the oxygen in the air. FAEs generally run between 225 and 900 kg (500 and 2,000 pounds); making an FAE the size of a daisy cutter would be difficult because the correct uniform mixture of agent with ambient air would be difficult to maintain if the agent were so widely dispersed. Thus, the conventional explosive of a daisy cutter is more reliable than that of an FAE, particularly if there is significant wind or thermal gradient.

This system depends upon the accurate positioning of the aircraft by either a fixed ground radar

Radar is a system that uses electromagnetic radiation waves to identify the range, altitude, direction, or speed of both moving and fixed objects such as aircraft, ships, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain….
or on-board navigation equipment. The ground radar controller, or aircrew navigator as applicable, is responsible for positioning the aircraft prior to final countdown and release. Primary aircrew considerations include accurate ballistic and wind computations provided by the navigator, and precision instrument flying with strict adherence to controller instructions. The minimum altitude for release due to blast effects of the weapon is 6,000 feet (1,800 m) above ground level (AGL). The warhead contains 12,600 pounds (5,700 kg) of low-cost GSX slurry

A slurry is, in general, a thick suspension of solids in a liquid and may be:* A mixture of water and cement to form concrete* A mixture of water, thickening agent#weapon use, and oxidizers used as an water gel…
(ammonium nitrate

The chemical compound ammonium nitrate, the nitrate of ammonia with the chemical formula NitrogenHydrogen4NitrogenOxygen3, is a white powder at room temperature and standard pressure….
, aluminium

Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white and ductile member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al; its atomic number is 13….
powder and polystyrene

Polystyrene , sometimes abbreviated PS, is an Aromaticity polymer made from the aromatic monomer styrene, a liquid hydrocarbon that is commercially manufactured from petroleum by the chemical industry….
) and is detonated just above ground level by a 38-inch (965 mm) fuse extender, optimized for destruction at ground level without digging a crater

In the broadest sense, the term impact crater can be applied to any depression, natural or manmade, resulting from the high velocity impact of a projectile with larger body….
. The weapon produces an overpressure of 1,000 pounds per square inch (psi) (7 MPa) near ground zero, tapering off as distance increases.

The BLU-82 was originally designed to clear helicopter landing zones and artillery

Artillery is a military Combat Arms which employs any apparatus, machine, an assortment of tools or instruments, a system or systems used as weapons for the discharge of large projectiles in combat as a major contribution of fire power within the overall military capability of an armed force….
emplacements in Vietnam. South Vietnamese VNAF aircraft dropped BLU-82 bombs on NVA positions in desperation to support ARVN troops in the Battle of Xuan Loc

The Battle of Xuan Loc also known as “the last stand at Xuan Loc”, was the last major battle of the Vietnam War that took place in Xuan Loc, Dong Nai Province….
in the last days of the Vietnam War.

Eleven BLU-82Bs were palletized and dropped in five night missions during the 1991 Gulf War

“Persian Gulf War” and “First Gulf War” redirect here. For other uses, see Persian Gulf War .The Persian Gulf War was a United Nations-authorized military conflict between Iraq and a Coalition of Gulf War from 34 nations commissioned with expelling Iraqi forces from Kuwait after Iraq’s Invasion of Kuwait of Kuwait in August 1990….
, all from Special Operations

Special operations are military operations that are considered “special” .Examples of special operations include such operations such as reconnaissance/military intelligence, unconventional warfare, and counter-terrorism actions….
MC-130 Combat Talon

The Lockheed MC-130 is the basic designation for a family of special missions aircraft operated by the Air Force Special Operations Command of the United States Air Force….
s. The initial drop tested the ability of the bomb to clear or breach mine fields; however, no reliable assessments of mine clearing effectiveness are publicly available. Later, bombs were dropped as much for their psychological effect as for their anti-personnel effects.

The US Air Force

The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare branch of the Military of the United States and one of the uniformed services of the United States….
dropped several BLU-82s during the campaign to destroy the Taliban and al-Qaeda

Al-Qaeda, alternatively spelled al-Qaida and sometimes al-Qa’ida, is an international Sunni Islam Islamist Extremism movement founded sometime between August 1988 and late 1989/early 1990….
terrorist networks in Afghanistan to attack and demoralize personnel and to destroy underground and cave complexes. On 15 July 2008, Airmen from the Duke Field

Duke Field , also known as Eglin AFB Auxiliary Field #3, is a military airport located three miles south of the central business district of Crestview, Florida, in Okaloosa County, Florida, Florida, United States….
711th Special Operations Squadron, 919th Special Operations Wing

The 919th Special Operations Wing is an Air Force Reserve wing of the United States Air Force based at Eglin AFB Auxiliary Field #3 / Duke Field, Florida….
dropped the last operational BLU-82 at the Utah Test and Training Range.