- Yes
- No
Welcome to this new suggestion for a French weapon.
This time, I present the CASCAD Mk1, a cluster bomb used on the Mirage 2000.
The CASCAD Mk 1 is a cluster bomb based on the BM-400 bomb developed by Thomson Brandt Armements. This bomb is composed of a smooth body allowing it to reach a certain distance before releasing its various sub-munitions. This bomb, although little known and used, was introduced on the Mirage 2000 of the French and Indian Air Forces. There are few sources concerning them but here is a good summary.
Characteristics
Length : 3.2m
Diameter : 320mm
Total weight : 390kg
Minimum height of use: 80m
Number of charges : 3 x 90kg charges
The bomb is divided into three sections, the front section contains an altimeter powered by a turbo alternator, this section allows the bomb to know when to release the charges. The middle section is the storage area of the charges, these are stowed widthwise with their parachute towards the rear. Finally, the rear section contains the 4 stabilizing fins which are retracted during flight under the aircraft and which deploy during release.
Charges
The three charges inside the bomb body each weigh 90 kg and are fragmentation charges. There are two different charges: one containing 800 fragments and the other containing 1,500 fragments (the fragment sizes, and therefore the penetration, vary with the quantity).
When the CASCAD Mk 1 is dropped, the bomb deploys four fins at the rear to stabilize itself (the bomb can reach a distance of 5 km when dropped with a bell-shaped trajectory) and then falls to a pre-defined altitude before releasing all three at an interval predefined by the operator (ideally, the impact charges every 200 meters, allowing an area of 600 x 200 meters to be hit). Once released from the rear of the bomb, the charges are slowed by a parachute until they impact the ground. Upon impact, the charges explode, bringing the fragments horizontally closer.
Surprisingly, the charges are dropped from the rear of the bomb. Indeed, during the drop, the rear section with the stabilizing fins detaches, allowing the parachutes of the charges to open.
The 800-shard charge can pierce 17mm at 50m and 12mm at 100m, while the 1500-shard charge can pierce 12mm at 50m and 7mm at 100m, making it possible to treat numerous targets at a significant distance.
In the game this bomb would be an interesting addition because it is a weapon specific to the Mirage 2000 (the Mirage 2000 is the only aircraft to have carried and fired this weapon) which could be integrated into the game if cluster munitions are added one day.
