CBU-89/B
Primary function:	1,000 pound (450 kg) unpowered cluster munition weapon
Length:	7 ft 8 in (2.3 m)
Diameter:	16 in (406 mm)
Range:	Freefall
CBU-78/B
Primary function:	500 pound (250 kg) unpowered cluster munition weapon
Length:	7 ft 8 in (2.3 m)
Diameter:	16 in (406 mm)
Weight:	222 kg
Range:	Freefall

The GATOR mine system is a US

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 system of air-dropped anti-tank and anti-personnel mine

Anti-personnel mine

Anti-personnel mines are a form of land mine designed for use against humans, as opposed to anti-tank mines, which are designed for use against vehicles...

s, that was developed in the 1980s to be compatible with existing cluster dispensers. It is used with two dispenser systems — the Navy 500 lb CBU-78/B and the Air Force 1,000 lb CBU-89/B. Additionally the mines are used with the land- and helicopter-based Volcano mine system

Volcano mine system

The M139 Volcano mine system is a US highspeed landmine laying system. It can lay a minefield one kilometer long, containing 960 mines in 43 seconds from a ground vehicle, and in just 17 seconds from a helicopter...

.

In use the bombs are dropped at speeds between 200 and 700 knots, and at altitudes of between 100 and 1,200 meters. A fuse in the FMU-140B controls the opening of the dispenser at one of 10 predetermined altitudes between 90 m and 900 m using a doppler ranging radar

Doppler radar

A Doppler radar is a specialized radar that makes use of the Doppler effect to produce velocity data about objects at a distance. It does this by beaming a microwave signal towards a desired target and listening for its reflection, then analyzing how the frequency of the returned signal has been...

 or alternatively a 1.2 second time fuse. Mine arming begins when the dispenser opens with the activation of the mines' vanadium pentoxide batteries

Vanadium redox battery

The vanadium redox battery is a type of rechargeable flow battery that employs vanadium ions in different oxidation states to store chemical potential energy...

. The circular mines have a rectangular plastic "aeroballistic" adaptor. Once the mines reach the ground they arm in between 1.2 and 10 seconds.

The mines self-destruct after a preset period of 4 hours, 15 hours or 15 days. Any that do not will be rendered disabled after 40 days when the batteries expire. The self-destruct time is set just prior to aircraft takeoff using a simple selector switch on the dispenser. During the Gulf War

Gulf War

The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...

 the dud rate for this system was significant, in one of seven Kuwati

Kuwait

The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...

 battlefield sectors there were 205 BLU-91 and 841 BLU-92 duds. Given that 89,235 BLU-91 and 27,535 BLU-92 mines were used during the Gulf War, this represents a dud rate of somewhere between 0.5 to 2% for the BLU-91 and to 6 to 21% for the BLU-92 http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d021003.pdf. Additionally, CMS mine field clearing personnel reported dud GATOR mines detonating with no apparent triggering event, and speculated that the extreme heat of the Kuwait desert may have triggered detonation.

The GATOR system provides a means to emplace minefields on the ground rapidly using high-speed tactical aircraft. A typical GATOR minefield is 650 m long and 200 m wide and contains 432 anti-tank mines and 132 anti-personnel mines. The minefields are used for area denial, diversion of moving ground forces, or to immobilize targets to supplement other direct attack weapons. In the 1991 Gulf War

Gulf War

The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...

 the US Air Force employed 1,105 CBU-89s — one of the reported tasks being to hamper the movements of Iraqi Scud missile launchers.

Airforce CBU-89/B

The Airforce CBU-89/B is a 1,000-pound cluster munition containing 72 antitank and 22 antipersonnel mines, consists of an SUU-64 Tactical Munitions Dispenser with an optional FZU-39 proximity sensor. The TMD is the same general configuration used for the CBU-87/B Combined Effects Munition. This commonality allows for high-rate, low-cost production of the dispenser.

When the CBU-89 is used in conjunction with the Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser

Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser

The Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser system is a tail kit for use with the TMD family of cluster bombs to convert them to precision-guided weapons...

 guidance tail kit, it is designated as CBU-104.

Navy CBU-78/B

The Navy CBU-78/B is a 500-pound cluster munition containing 45 antitank and 15 antipersonnel mines. It uses the same dispenser as the Mk7 Rockeye.

BLU-91/B anti-tank mine

The BLU-91 /B AT mine is a low flat cylinder with a rectangular aeroballistic shell. A magnetic sensor in the mine detects targets, when it detects a suitable target and the target reaches the most vulnerable approach point it detonates the mine. The mine is also triggered if the mine is moved, or if the battery reaches a certain low voltage point.

Once the fuse is triggered, a small clearing charge is fired that clears any debris that may be on top of the mine. A second larger charge is triggered 30 ms later, creating an Explosively Formed Penetrator

Explosively Formed Penetrator

An explosively formed penetrator , also known as an explosively formed projectile, a self-forging warhead, or a self-forging fragment, is a special type of shaped charge designed to penetrate armour effectively at standoff distances...

 using the Misznay-Schardin effect

Misznay-Schardin effect

The Misznay–Schardin effect, or platter effect, is a characteristic of the detonation of a broad sheet of explosive. The explosive blast expands directly away from the surface of an explosive...

 capable of penetrating 70 mm of armour. The charge is capable of penetrating the belly of most armoured vehicles.

The mine weighs 1.95 kilograms and is 127 millimeters in diameter, with 0.58 kilograms of an RDX

RDX

RDX, an initialism for Research Department Explosive, is an explosive nitroamine widely used in military and industrial applications. It was developed as an explosive which was more powerful than TNT, and it saw wide use in WWII. RDX is also known as cyclonite, hexogen , and T4...

/Estane

Polymer-bonded explosive

A polymer-bonded explosive, also called PBX or plastic-bonded explosive, is an explosive material in which explosive powder is bound together in a matrix using small quantities of a synthetic polymer...

 explosive mix.

BLU-92/B anti-personnel mine

After the mine reaches the ground, and the arming delay has passed - a squib is fired launching 8 tripwires from the mine. Tension on any of the wires triggers the mine electronically. The mine has an effective fragmentation radius of about 20 meters - in addition it has an anti-handling "ball and can" switch.

The mine is approximately 127 millimeters in diameter and weighs 1.68 kilograms. The mines main charge consists of 0.42 kilograms of Composition B-4. It is found unexploded in Iraq and Kuwait after US military usage in the Gulf War.