The Umbani is a precision-guided bomb kit manufactured by Denel Dynamics in South Africa. It consists of a number of modules fitted to

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two N ...

standard Mk81,

Mk82 The Mark 82 (Mk 82) is an unguided, low- drag general-purpose bomb, part of the United States Mark 80 series. The explosive filling is usually tritonal, though other compositions have sometimes been used. Development and deployment Wi ...

Mk83 The Mark 83 is part of the Mark 80 series of low-drag general-purpose bombs in United States service. Development and deployment The nominal weight of the bomb is 1,000 lb (454 kg), although its actual weight varies between 985 ...

low drag free-fall bombs to convert them into guided

glide bomb A glide bomb or stand-off bomb is a standoff weapon with flight control surfaces to give it a flatter, gliding flight path than that of a conventional bomb without such surfaces. This allows it to be released at a distance from the target r ...

Design

The modular kit consists of a number units that are attached to a standard Mk80-series bomb. A guidance system and large tail fins are the most basic form of the system, optional folding wings and a rocket motor may be added to increase the stand-off range up to or add a low-level launch capability. Range using different configurations: * Standard bomb kit - 40 km * With folding wing kit - 120 km * With wing kit and Extended Range (ER) module - 200 km

Guidance

The weapon's all-weather, day and night capability is due to the GPS–

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guidance system. Increasing accuracy to a claimed 3m

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is possible by adding an

imaging infrared Infrared thermography (IRT), thermal video and/or thermal imaging, is a process where a thermal camera captures and creates an image of an object by using infrared radiation emitted from the object in a process, which are examples of infrared ...

or a

semi-active laser seeker Laser guidance directs a robotics system to a target position by means of a laser beam. The laser guidance of a robot is accomplished by projecting a laser light, image processing and communication to improve the accuracy of guidance. The key ide ...

terminal guidance system.

Testing and qualification

The system was first tested on the

Atlas Cheetah The Atlas Cheetah is a South African fighter aircraft designed and produced by the aviation company Atlas Aircraft Corporation (later Denel Aeronautics). It was developed at the behest of, and principally operated by, the South African Air F ...

, later an

Aerosud Aerosud is a group of companies with Aerosud Holdings as the parent company. The group is a South African aeronautical engineering and manufacturing company. Aerosud Aerospace was renamed Paramount Aerospace following its acquisition by Paramou ...

-owned former

South African Air Force "Through hardships to the stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...

(SAAF)

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was used after the Cheetah retired. The system has been integrated on the SAAF's BAE Hawk Mk120 lead-in fighter trainer aircraft. Qualification on the SAAF's

Saab JAS 39 Gripen The Saab JAS 39 Gripen (; English: ''griffin'') is a light single-engine multirole fighter aircraft manufactured by the Swedish aerospace and defense company Saab AB. The Gripen has a delta wing and canard configuration with relaxed stabilit ...

was not considered due to the high costs associated with integration on a supersonic aircraft. The Gripens have been armed with

GBU-12 Paveway II The GBU-12 Paveway II is an American aerial laser-guided bomb, based on the Mk 82 500-pound (227 kg) general-purpose bomb, but with the addition of a nose-mounted laser seeker and fins for guidance. A member of the Paveway series of weapons, ...

bombs instead.

Sales

The manufacturer has expressed optimism at the export potential of the system following qualification on the Hawk as a number of air forces worldwide operate Hawks. An unnamed country has placed an order worth ZAR1.2 billion for the weapon. Although the SAAF has funded most of the development costs of the weapon system it has not yet placed a firm order for any. Tawazun Dynamics, the joint venture company created by Denel and Tawazun, has been awarded a US$492.74 million contract from the United Arab Emirates Air Force for precision guided munitions (PGMs) for its Mirage 2000-9 fighters. The fighter jets will receive the Tawazun Dynamics developed Al Tariq bomb guidance kit which is the renamed Denel Dynamics Umbani.

Joint venture

On 20 September 2012 at the

Africa Aerospace and Defence The African Aerospace and Defence Expo (AAD) is an aerospace and defence exhibition held every two years at AFB Waterkloof, in Centurion, Gauteng, South Africa. The exhibition combines a trade exhibition and an air show. The AAD began in 1975 wh ...

2012 show in Pretoria, South Africa, Denel Dynamics announced a joint venture with Tawazun Holdings of the United Arab Emirates to develop and manufacture various precision weapons. A version of the Umbani known as the "Al-Tariq" will be the first product of the new Tawazun Dynamics company.

References

{{Denel Post–Cold War weapons of South Africa Guided bombs Denel