US Air Force Finally Tests New GBU-31 JDAM Anti-Ship Variant

The US Air Force Research Laboratory and Eglin Air Force Base’s Integrated Test Team recently demonstrated a new low-cost, air-delivered smart weapon capability intended to defeat maritime threats. The test which happened on April 28, 2022, saw an F-15E Strike Eagle releasing a modified 2,000 pound GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack Munition or JDAM and successfully destroying a full-scale surface vessel in the Gulf of Mexico. This test is the second experiment in the Quicksink Joint Capability Technology Demonstration, a collaborative effort with AFRL, the 780th Test Squadron of the 96th Test Wing, and the 85th Test and Evaluation Squadron of the 53rd Wing, and funded by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. “Quicksink is an answer to an urgent need to neutralize maritime threats to freedom around the world,” said Colonel Tony Meeks, director of AFRL Munitions Directorate. “The men and women of this directorate consistently find ways to solve our nation’s greatest challenges.”