The demand in Iraq and Afghanistan for precision weapons that minimize collateral damage and reduce shrapnel is driving the development of a new variant of the Small Diameter Bomb called the Focused Lethality Munition, senior Air Force acquisition leaders told reporters Thursday. The weapon will carry a 250-pound warhead that is superb for taking out bad guys in tight spots where civilians might be present, but it still has a good amount of shrapnel that can impact the surrounding area, said Lt. Gen. Donald Hoffman. The FLM, in testing currently, has a similar blast effect but the radius diminishes quickly due to a new woven casing as opposed to a traditional steel casing. A typical bomb has shrapnel that can go a long distance after impact, said Maj. Gen. Mark Shackelford. Without deadly shrapnel, nearby civilians and other friendlies stand a much lower risk of being injured or killed in a precision strike, he added.
The U.S. began extensive air and artillery strikes against Islamic State group targets in Syria on Dec. 19 in retaliation for the killing of three Americans on Dec. 13 by a gunman affiliated with ISIS, U.S. officials said.
