Precision-Guided Munition

A **precision-guided munition** (**PGM**, **smart weapon**, **smart munition**, **smart bomb**) is a guided munition intended to precisely hit a specific target, to minimize collateral damage and increase lethality against intended targets. Currently speaking, in the New World, nations such as Japan, the Holy Milishial Empire, and the Ravernal Empire can claim to possess these powerful weapons, while the Gra Valkas Empire is still in research stage.

## Overview

Because the damage effects of explosive weapons decrease with distance due to an inverse cube law, even modest improvements in accuracy (hence reduction in miss distance) enable a target to be attacked with fewer or smaller bombs. Thus, even if some guided bombs miss, fewer air crews are put at risk and the harm to civilians and the amount of collateral damage may be reduced. The advent of precision-guided munitions resulted in the renaming of older bombs "unguided bombs", "dumb bombs", or "iron bombs".

## Types of Precision-Guided Munitions

### **Radio**

Using radio waves in order to make corrections in a bomb or missile's flight trajectory toward a target. An example of this is the World War 2 era Fritz X bomb of Nazi Germany. An extension of this kind of guidance is radar-guidance for long-range, Beyond Visual Range munitions such as the Harpoon Missile.

### **Infrared-guided/electro-optical weapons**

Use of infrared sensors or 'heat-seeking' equipment to allow missiles and bombs to guide themselves to a target. An example of these are the short-range missiles such as the Type-90 AAM-3 and the Type 99 AAM-4. Guided munitions can also include optical or tv-guided systems such as the AGM-62 Walleye.

### **Laser-guided weapons**

These types of weapons depend on following a laser beam that is focused on the target. As a result, they either need a 'spotter' aircraft to focus the laser beam or have a spotter crew on the ground. An example is the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM).

### **Satellite-guided weapons**

These weapons make use of either GPS or satellite guidance in order to find the correct coordinates of a target.

## Precision-Guided Munitions in the New World

### Japan

Since they come from 21st Century Earth, Japan possesses a wide variety of guided munitions in their arsenal, which include bombs, torpedoes and especially guided missile technology. As a result, all wars fought by Japan has devastated all opponents so far, including the New World War. Since all guided munitions technology is part of Japan's military defense secrets, they are completely restricted and not available for export by the New World Technology Outflow Prevention Act.

### Holy Milishial Empire

Recently, the Holy Milishial Empire has finally used its first Guided Magic Warheads, the **Ultima-I Surface-to-Surface Missile (SSM)** and the **Ku Ultima-I Surface-to-Air Missile (SAM).** The Ultima-I aka the "Fire of Heaven" has the capability to sink a battleship with a single shot, as demonstrated during the Liberation of Leifor. However, the said missile is inferior to Japan's missiles as it is has a predictable parabolic trajectory, has subsonic speed and not capable of sea-skimming, which can be easily intercepted by the Advanced Technology Command System (ATECS) and AEGIS Combat Systems. Furthermore, the empire is has still no man-portable version of their missiles.

### Gra Valkas Empire

They already had the concept of guided munitions: these were assumed to be gliding bombs that were dropped by aircraft and manually guided to the target by an operator, which still in experimental, proof-of-concept stage. It implies that it is a radio-guided weapon.

### Ravernal Empire

The Ravernal Empire also claimed to have guided weapons before its disappearance, and were referred to as 'homing bullets of light.'