US reportedly develops advanced missile-bomb for Ukraine with 463 km range

The US military is working on creating a missile-bomb for the Ukrainian Armed Forces with an expected range of 463 kilometers, according to Defense Express.

As of January 2025, Ukraine’s defense industry has reached unprecedented levels of efficiency and output. The domestic production accounted for over 96% of all unmanned aerial vehicles utilized by the Ukrainian military in 2024. Recently, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal announced that Kyiv aims to produce at least 30,000 long-range drones in 2025. Alongside drones, Ukraine plans to manufacture approximately 3,000 cruise missiles and missile drones this year.

Currently, almost no information is available about the weapon. It will likely be equipped with the Quicksink guidance system, which would enable the missile to sink ships.

The basic contract terms, which are publicly available, stipulate that the missile-bomb must be ready by 2026, with production volumes set at 1,000 units per year. In addition, the US, Ukraine, Denmark, and the Netherlands are involved in the development of the product.

According to The War Zone, the project has reached a stage where the selection of a guidance system for the munition has become a key issue. Specifically, it may involve a system that does not rely on GPS navigation. This is why the Quicksink guidance system is mentioned, as it combines radar and infrared technologies. The Quicksink system has previously performed well on GBU-31/B JDAM bombs, being resistant to electronic warfare attacks.

However, the major issue is its extremely high cost. The Quicksink system price is $200,000 per unit, but the US hopes to reduce the price to at least $50,000 per unit.

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