Munitions

GBU-10 Paveway II

Also known as
  • GBU-10/B
  • GBU-10/B Paveway II
  • GBU-10A/B
  • GBU-10E/B
  • GBU-10H/B
  • Paveway II 2,000-pound LGB

The GBU-10 Paveway II is a U.S.-origin 2,000-pound semi-active laser-guided bomb built around the Paveway II guidance-kit family. It combines a Mk 84-class or BLU-109-class bomb body with laser seeker and control surfaces, and direct sources document its use by U.S., Canadian, Belgian, and NATO aircraft from Desert Storm through Libya in 2011.

GBU-10 Paveway II, 2,000-pound laser-guided bomb, Munitions
Image source: GBU-10 Paveway II image

Role in Conflicts

1999 Kosovo War / Operation Allied Force
Side
NATO
Role in conflict
Air-delivered precision strike

Canadian CF-18 operations in Operation Allied Force included emergency work to clear, load, and employ GBU-10 laser-guided bombs as Canada expanded beyond unguided bombing.

2011 First Libyan Civil War
Role in conflict
Air-delivered precision strike

RAND's study of the 2011 Libya air campaign records Canadian CF-188s dropping GBU-10s during Operation Mobile and Belgian F-16s releasing 21 GBU-10s.

Documented Combat Use

The clearest public records identify GBU-10 use through munition tables, aircraft load records, and campaign histories rather than through a single operator ledger. The rows below keep the evidence type visible so readers can separate confirmed release counts from documented carriage or employment context.

ConflictEvidence typeSource-backed detail
1990 Gulf WarCampaign evaluationGAO lists GBU-10 laser-guided bomb use in Desert Storm bridge attacks.
1999 Kosovo War / Operation Allied ForceOperator historyCanadian CF-18 units cleared, loaded, and employed GBU-10s during the NATO air campaign.
2003 Iraq WarMunition tableHuman Rights Watch records 236 GBU-10 Paveway II bombs in the 2003 air war.
2011 First Libyan Civil WarCampaign studyRAND records Canadian CF-188 and Belgian F-16 GBU-10 releases during NATO operations.
Profile / Specs

Profile

Origin
United States
Type
2,000-pound laser-guided bomb
Service note
Paveway II family from the 1970s; the GBU-10 is the 2,000-pound configuration
Produced
1970s-present

Specifications

Weight class
2,000 lb / 907 kg class
Bomb body
Mk 84 general-purpose bomb body or BLU-109 penetrator body in supported configurations
Guidance
Semi-active laser Paveway II guidance kit
Length
About 14 ft 9 in / 4.50 m
Diameter
18 in / 45.7 cm
Seeker
Laser seeker homes on reflected laser energy from a designated target
Variants

The GBU-10 is the 2,000-pound member of a broader Paveway family whose adjacent entries use different bomb bodies, guidance improvements, or weight classes.

VariantConfigurationDesignation notes
GBU-16 Paveway II, 1,000-pound laser-guided bomb, MunitionsGBU-16 Paveway II1,000-pound Paveway II family member

Designation-Systems.net places GBU-16 in the Paveway II designation family as the smaller 1,000-pound-class counterpart to the GBU-10 lineage.

Sources: Raytheon (Texas Instruments) Paveway II

GBU-49 Enhanced Paveway II, 500-pound GPS/laser-guided bomb, MunitionsGBU-49 Enhanced Paveway IIEnhanced Paveway II family member

Air & Space Forces Magazine groups the GBU-49 with the GBU-10 and GBU-12 Paveway II family in its weapon-platform reference.

Sources: GBU-10/12/49 Paveway II

Carrier Aircraft

Carrier records and combat-report sources document the GBU-10 on U.S., Canadian, Belgian, and NATO strike aircraft.

CarrierCarrier typeCarriage evidence
F-15 family fighter aircraft, Fighter aircraft family, Aircraft & UAVsF-15 family fighter aircraftMultirole fighter aircraft

Boeing's Advanced F-15 weapons inventory explicitly lists the GBU-10 Paveway II in the F-15 external carriage matrix.

Sources: Advanced F-15 Weapons Inventory

F-16 Fighting Falcon, Multirole fighter aircraft, Aircraft & UAVsF-16 Fighting FalconMultirole fighter aircraft

RAND records Belgian F-16s releasing 21 GBU-10s during the 2011 Libya air campaign.

Sources: RAND Libya Air Campaign

F/A-18 Hornet (Tactical), Carrier-capable multirole strike fighter, Aircraft & UAVsF/A-18 Hornet (Tactical)Carrier-capable multirole strike fighter

Canadian CF-18 operations during Operation Allied Force included clearing, loading, and employing GBU-10 bombs.

Sources: Scattering Chaff Allied Force

F-14 Tomcat, Carrier-based air superiority fighter, Aircraft & UAVsF-14 TomcatCarrier-based fighter aircraft

A U.S. government image record shows an F-14D carrying GBU-10s on a bombing mission over Afghanistan in November 2001.

Sources: F-14D GBU-10 Afghanistan Image

Bomb Body Compatibility

The GBU-10 is the 2,000-pound Paveway II configuration and can use general-purpose or penetrator bomb bodies depending on the designation.

Carried itemItem typeCarriage evidence
BLU-109 penetrator warhead, 2,000-pound hard-target penetrator warhead, MunitionsBLU-109 penetrator warhead2,000-pound hard-target penetrator warhead

FY19 Air Force procurement material identifies the GBU-10 Paveway II as one of the weapon systems that uses the BLU-109 warhead.

Sources: Air Force Ammunition Procurement FY19

Why the 2,000-pound Paveway II class matters

The same designation family can describe a laser-guidance kit fitted to different 2,000-pound bodies, so conflict reports may identify the munition by GBU-10 even when the exact bomb body is not stated.

Sources: Raytheon (Texas Instruments) Paveway II, Air Force Ammunition Procurement FY19

Timeline

GBU-10 Paveway II Key Events

  1. Paveway II family enters Air Force service

    Air & Space Forces Magazine places the Paveway II family initial operational capability in 1976.

  2. Desert Storm combat use

    GAO's Desert Storm air-campaign review identifies GBU-10 laser-guided bombs among the munitions used against Iraqi bridge targets.

  3. Canadian CF-18 GBU-10 employment in Allied Force

    A Canadian air-campaign history describes CF-18 units clearing, loading, and employing GBU-10s during Operation Allied Force.

  4. F-14D Afghanistan mission load

    A U.S. government image record shows an F-14D carrying GBU-10s on a bombing mission over Afghanistan.

  5. Iraq air-war expenditure record

    Human Rights Watch's Iraq air-war appendix lists 236 GBU-10 Paveway II bombs among coalition precision-guided munitions.

  6. Operation Mobile GBU-10 drops

    RAND records Canadian CF-188s first dropping GBU-10s during Operation Mobile on May 7, 2011.

Media

GBU-10 Paveway II Images

GBU-10 Paveway II, 2,000-pound laser-guided bomb, Munitions - view 1
Source: F-14D GBU-10 Afghanistan Image
Related Weapon Systems
GBU-24 Paveway III, 2,000-pound-class laser-guided bomb, MunitionsMunitionsGBU-24 Paveway III2,000-pound-class laser-guided bombThe GBU-24 Paveway III is a U.S.-origin 2,000-pound-class laser-guided bomb family that combines a Paveway III guidance section and airfoil group with Mk 84, BLU-109, or related hard-target bomb bodies. Official and military-history sources document GBU-24 use in the Gulf War, Kosovo, Afghanistan, and the 2003 Iraq War, while Yemen rights-monitoring sources identify GBU-24 or Paveway III-series remnants from Saudi/UAE-led coalition airstrikes where fragmentary evidence can limit exact bomb-body identification.
Paveway laser-guided bomb, Laser-guided bomb guidance-kit family, MunitionsMunitionsPaveway laser-guided bombLaser-guided bomb guidance-kit familyPaveway is a U.S.-origin family of laser-guided bomb kits that turns conventional gravity bombs into precision air-to-surface weapons by adding a seeker, computer-control group, and airfoil surfaces. Raytheon traces production to 1968, while later Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, and Raytheon UK lines cover Paveway II, Paveway III, dual-mode Enhanced Paveway, Paveway IV, and Paveway II Plus kits documented in combat-use and transfer records from the Falklands and Gulf War through Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Ukraine, and Yemen.

Sources

Direct Attack WeaponsPublisher: Naval Air Systems Command | Note: Supports the GBU-10's 2,000-pound direct-attack bomb role and general Paveway II background. | Accessed: 2026-06-29GBU-10/12/49 Paveway IIPublisher: Air & Space Forces Magazine | Note: Supports the GBU-10 Paveway II identity, contractor background, 1976 family IOC context, and published dimensions and role data. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Raytheon (Texas Instruments) Paveway IIPublisher: Designation-Systems.net | Note: Supports the exact GBU-10/B designation, Mk 84 bomb-body class, Paveway II family designation context, and variant lineage. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Advanced F-15 Weapons InventoryPublisher: Boeing | Note: Supports the F-15 external carriage matrix listing GBU-10 Paveway II. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Air Force Ammunition Procurement FY19Publisher: U.S. Air Force | Note: Supports the GBU-10 Paveway II Laser Guided Bomb and BLU-109 compatibility described in FY19 ammunition procurement material. | Accessed: 2026-06-29GAO Desert Storm Air CampaignPublisher: U.S. Government Accountability Office | Note: Supports 1990 Gulf War GBU-10 use by coalition aircraft in Desert Storm bridge attacks and the campaign munitions context. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Scattering Chaff Allied ForcePublisher: University of Calgary Press | Note: Supports 1999 Kosovo War / Operation Allied Force GBU-10 use by Canadian CF-18 units, including clearance, loading, and employment context. | Accessed: 2026-06-29F-14D GBU-10 Afghanistan ImagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports 2001 War in Afghanistan carriage/use context and image provenance for a U.S. government photo of an F-14D carrying GBU-10 bombs on a bombing mission over Afghanistan. | Accessed: 2026-06-29HRW Iraq Air War WeaponsPublisher: Human Rights Watch | Note: Supports 2003 Iraq War GBU-10 use by listing 236 GBU-10 Paveway II bombs among precision-guided munitions used in the 2003 air war. | Accessed: 2026-06-29RAND Libya Air CampaignPublisher: RAND Corporation | Note: Supports 2011 First Libyan Civil War GBU-10 use by Canadian CF-188s during Operation Mobile and Belgian F-16 GBU-10 releases during NATO operations. | Accessed: 2026-06-29TWZ Saudi Arms DealPublisher: The War Zone | Note: Supports the F-15S and F-15SA carriage of GBU-10/B Paveway bombs in the Saudi arms-deal package context; not used as direct conflict-use evidence. | Accessed: 2026-06-29GBU-10 Paveway II imagePublisher: U.S. Air Force | Note: Image provenance and public-domain context for an Air Force illustration of a GBU-10 Paveway II. | Accessed: 2026-06-29