2001 War in Afghanistan

CBU-103 Wind-Corrected Munitions Dispenser in the 2001 War in Afghanistan

U.S. forces used the CBU-103, a WCMD-equipped CBU-87 cluster munition, during the Afghanistan air campaign; Human Rights Watch described Afghanistan as the type's first combat use.

Weapon profileCBU-103 Wind-Corrected Munitions Dispenser
SideUnited States, NATO, and Afghan government forcesRoleArea DenialInterdiction
CBU-103 Wind-Corrected Munitions Dispenser, Wind-corrected munition dispenser, Munitions - 2001 War in Afghanistan
Image source: DVIDS B-1B CBU-103 live fire image

Evidence Map

ClaimSources
U.S. forces used CBU-103 cluster munitions in Afghanistan.

Sources: HRW Fatally Flawed Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Report, UK Hansard Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Policy

Afghanistan was the CBU-103's first combat use.

Sources: HRW Fatally Flawed Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Report

The CBU-103 was used as part of an aerial cluster-bomb campaign that struck military bases, frontlines, villages with Taliban or al-Qaeda troops, and cave complexes.

Sources: HRW Fatally Flawed Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Report

Civilian harm and unexploded BLU-97 bomblets are documented for the broader CBU-87/CBU-103 cluster-bomb campaign, but HRW's incident narratives do not always distinguish the exact dispenser model.

Sources: HRW Fatally Flawed Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Report

Timeline

CBU-103 Wind-Corrected Munitions Dispenser In 2001 War in Afghanistan

  1. U.S. air campaign begins

    Human Rights Watch dates the beginning of the Afghanistan air campaign to October 7, 2001 and later identifies CBU-103 cluster bombs among the U.S. aerial cluster munitions used in that campaign.

    Sources: HRW Fatally Flawed Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Report

  2. UK minister confirms CBU-103 use

    In the House of Lords, Lord Bach stated that CBU-103 cluster munitions had been used in Afghanistan, while saying CBU-89 and CBU-104 Gator bombs had not been dropped there.

    Sources: UK Hansard Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Policy

  3. End of reported main cluster-bomb period

    Human Rights Watch reported about 1,228 U.S. cluster bombs dropped in Afghanistan between October 2001 and March 2002, primarily CBU-87 and CBU-103 models.

    Sources: HRW Fatally Flawed Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Report

  4. HRW publishes Afghanistan cluster-bomb report

    Human Rights Watch published Fatally Flawed, documenting U.S. CBU-103 use, the weapon's first combat use, strike categories, and the effects of unexploded BLU-97 bomblets.

    Sources: HRW Fatally Flawed Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Report

Documented Use

Direct proof of use

Human Rights Watch reported that the United States used the CBU-103 in Afghanistan alongside the CBU-87 during the 2001-2002 air campaign. Its report identifies the CBU-103 as a CBU-87 fitted with a Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser tail kit and describes Afghanistan as the model's first combat use.

A separate UK Parliament exchange on November 14, 2001 also stated that CBU-103 cluster munitions had been used in Afghanistan. That statement distinguished the CBU-103 from CBU-89 and CBU-104 Gator mine dispensers, which the minister said had not been dropped over Afghanistan.

Sources: HRW Fatally Flawed Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Report, UK Hansard Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Policy

Timeline

The U.S. air campaign began on October 7, 2001. By November 14, 2001, the UK government was publicly confirming that CBU-103s were among the cluster munitions used in Afghanistan.

Human Rights Watch later reported that from October 2001 through March 2002, the United States dropped about 1,228 cluster bombs containing 248,056 bomblets in Afghanistan. HRW said the United States primarily used CBU-87 and CBU-103 aerial cluster bombs, with smaller numbers of Navy CBU-99s, CBU-100s, and JSOW-As.

Sources: HRW Fatally Flawed Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Report, UK Hansard Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Policy

Narrative

In Afghanistan, the CBU-103 served as an air-delivered area munition. Human Rights Watch described U.S. cluster strikes against military bases, frontlines, villages where Taliban and al-Qaeda troops were hiding, and cave complexes. The report characterized cluster bombs in Afghanistan as primarily antipersonnel and area weapons for broad, soft, moving, or imprecisely located targets.

The CBU-103's Afghanistan use was tied to the WCMD upgrade rather than to a different submunition payload. HRW described the weapon as the newer wind-corrected version of the CBU-87, carrying 202 BLU-97 combined-effects bomblets while using the WCMD tail kit to compensate for wind during fall.

HRW also documented the humanitarian consequences of the cluster-bomb campaign, including civilian casualties during strikes in or near populated areas and unexploded BLU-97 bomblets after attacks. Those findings support the conflict-use context but do not identify every incident by CBU-103 rather than by the broader CBU-87/CBU-103 family.

Sources: HRW Fatally Flawed Afghanistan Cluster Bomb Report

Related Weapons by Role

CBU-104 Wind-Corrected Munitions Dispenser, Wind-corrected munition dispenser, MunitionsMunitionsCBU-104 Wind-Corrected Munitions DispenserWind-corrected munition dispenserThe CBU-104 Wind-Corrected Munitions Dispenser is the WCMD-equipped version of the U.S. CBU-89 Gator mine dispenser. It keeps the 72 BLU-91 anti-armor and 22 BLU-92 anti-personnel mine payload while adding an inertial tail kit that corrects release errors and winds aloft, giving the Gator family a more accurate medium- or high-altitude delivery option. Public sources document the CBU-104 as a certified F-16/BRU-57 and B-1B weapon, while available conflict-use sources identify other WCMD variants rather than direct CBU-104 combat employment.
CBU-89 Gator mine, Air-delivered scatterable mine cluster munition, MunitionsMunitionsCBU-89 Gator mineAir-delivered scatterable mine cluster munitionThe CBU-89 Gator mine is a U.S. Air Force air-delivered scatterable mine cluster munition that uses the SUU-64/B Tactical Munitions Dispenser to lay mixed antitank and antipersonnel minefields. GAO and Human Rights Watch sources document its 1990 Gulf War employment, while reference sources describe a 1,000-pound-class weapon carrying 72 BLU-91/B antitank mines, 22 BLU-92/B antipersonnel mines, and an optional FZU-39 proximity sensor.
2 more weapons
Back to CBU-103 Wind-Corrected Munitions DispenserBrowse 2001 War in Afghanistan

Sources