Munitions

GBU-27 Paveway III

Also known as
  • GBU-27
  • GBU-27/B
  • GBU-27A/B
  • GBU-27B/B
  • EGBU-27
  • Guided Bomb Unit-27

The GBU-27 Paveway III is a U.S. 2,000-pound hard-target laser-guided bomb derived from the GBU-24 family and repackaged for internal carriage by the F-117A Nighthawk. GAO and GulfLINK records describe a BLU-109-based penetrator for hard targets, while Air Force reporting documents enhanced EGBU-27 use by F-117s in the opening phase of the 2003 Iraq War.

GBU-27 Paveway III, 2,000-pound hard-target laser-guided bomb, Munitions
Image source: GBU-27 - U.S. Air Force

Role in Conflicts

1999 Kosovo War / Operation Allied Force
Long-Range Strike
Side
NATO

The Defense Department's Operation Allied Force after-action report says most direct-attack weapons in the campaign were laser-guided bombs and lists the GBU-27 among the laser-guided bomb types used, while not identifying exact targets or quantities.

Profile / Specs

Profile

Origin
United States
Built by
Raytheon
Type
2,000-pound hard-target laser-guided bomb
Service note
Entered service in 1987; documented in combat from Operation Desert Storm through Operation Iraqi Freedom
Designed
1987
Unit cost
$55,000 (production unit cost, 1995 GAO report)
Produced
1987-present
Number built
3,213 listed in 1995 GAO inventory reporting

Specifications

Guidance
Semi-active laser guidance; EGBU-27 adds GPS/INS-aided guidance
Warhead
BLU-109/B or BLU-116/B penetrating warhead
Weight
About 2,170 pounds
Length
13 ft 10 in
Wingspan
5 ft 5 in
Diameter
2 ft 4 in
Range
More than 11 miles
Platform
F-117A Nighthawk internal carriage
Carriage
Two GBU-27s in the F-117's two weapons bays
Variants

GBU-27 designations sit inside the 2,000-pound Paveway III family but use a compact F-117-compatible configuration.

VariantConfigurationDesignation notes
GBU-27/BBaseline F-117 Paveway III configuration

The baseline configuration adapts the 2,000-pound Paveway III family for F-117 carriage with a compact airfoil group and penetrating warhead.

Sources: Raytheon Paveway III - Designation-Systems.Net, Guided Bomb Unit-27 Smart Weapons

GBU-27A/BEnhanced guided bomb unit

Air Force Test Center history records completion of F-117 flight-test evaluation for the GBU-27A/B enhanced guided bomb unit in 2000.

Sources: F-117 Combined Task Force Testing

GBU-27B/BBLU-116 penetrator configuration

Designation-Systems lists the GBU-27B/B as an enhanced GBU-27 configuration using a BLU-116/B advanced unitary penetrator warhead.

Sources: Raytheon Paveway III - Designation-Systems.Net

EGBU-27GPS/INS-aided enhanced GBU-27

Air Force reporting describes the EGBU-27 as an enhanced GBU-27 with satellite guidance added to the laser guidance system.

Sources: Stealth Fighters Use New Munitions To Hit Baghdad, Raytheon Paveway III - Designation-Systems.Net

GBU-24 Paveway III, 2,000-pound-class laser-guided bomb, MunitionsGBU-24 Paveway IIIParent 2,000-pound Paveway III family

The GBU-27 is described as a GBU-24-derived configuration modified for F-117 carriage.

Sources: Raytheon Paveway III - Designation-Systems.Net, Guided Bomb Unit-27 Smart Weapons

GBU-28 Paveway III, 5,000-pound laser-guided penetrator bomb, MunitionsGBU-28 Paveway IIIAdjacent hard-target Paveway III weapon

The larger GBU-28 was a separate Paveway III hard-target weapon developed after BLU-109-class effects were judged insufficient for the deepest hardened Iraqi bunkers.

Sources: Raytheon Paveway III - Designation-Systems.Net

Warhead Compatibility
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-27 as one of the weapon systems that uses the BLU-109 warhead.

Sources: Air Force Ammunition Procurement FY19

F-117 Carriage Configuration

The GBU-27 was configured around F-117 internal carriage, adapting the 2,000-pound Paveway III family into a compact hard-target weapon that could fit the Nighthawk weapons bays.

Carrier aircraft

F-117A Nighthawk internal weapons bays.

Family link

GBU-24-derived Paveway III configuration with compact airfoil and suspension changes.

Enhanced guidance

EGBU-27 added satellite guidance to supplement laser guidance when weather or obscuration limited laser tracking.

Timeline

GBU-27 Paveway III Key Events

  1. GBU-27 enters Air Force service

    GAO and Paveway-family references list 1987 as the GBU-27 first capability or service-entry point.

    Sources: GBU-27 - GAO Weapons Acquisition Report, Raytheon Paveway III - Designation-Systems.Net

  2. Operation Desert Storm combat use

    GAO records GBU-27 use in Operation Desert Storm by F-117 aircraft against hard targets.

    Sources: GBU-27 - GAO Weapons Acquisition Report

  3. Enhanced GBU-27A/B flight-test evaluation

    Air Force Test Center history says the F-117 Combined Task Force completed flight-test evaluation of the GBU-27A/B enhanced guided bomb unit.

    Sources: F-117 Combined Task Force Testing

  4. EGBU-27 first operational use

    Air Force reporting says the enhanced GBU-27 was used operationally for the first time against strategic Baghdad targets on the opening night of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

    Sources: Stealth Fighters Use New Munitions To Hit Baghdad

Media

GBU-27 Paveway III Images

GBU-27 Paveway III, 2,000-pound hard-target laser-guided bomb, Munitions - view 1
Source: GBU-27 xxl - Wikimedia Commons
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.
GBU-28 Paveway III, 5,000-pound laser-guided penetrator bomb, MunitionsMunitionsGBU-28 Paveway III5,000-pound laser-guided penetrator bombThe GBU-28 Paveway III is a U.S. 5,000-pound-class hard-target penetrator bomb rushed into service for Operation Desert Storm and later retained as a specialized air-launched bunker-buster. GAO and Air & Space Forces sources describe a semi-active laser-guided weapon with a 4,400-pound-class penetrator warhead, while later GBU-28B/B and GBU-28C/B variants added GPS/INS guidance and the BLU-122 improved penetrator for all-weather hard-target attack.
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.
BLU-109 penetrator warhead, 2,000-pound hard-target penetrator warhead, MunitionsMunitionsBLU-109 penetrator warhead2,000-pound hard-target penetrator warheadThe BLU-109 is a U.S.-origin 2,000-pound hard-target penetrator warhead built around a thick forged-steel bomb body for defeating reinforced structures and buried targets. It appears as the bomb body inside guided weapons such as GBU-24 Paveway III and GBU-31 JDAM configurations, with source-backed conflict context ranging from Saudi-led coalition stocks in Yemen to Israeli JDAM-linked use and transfers in Gaza, Lebanon, and the 2025 Israel-Iran fighting.

Sources

GBU-27 - U.S. Air ForcePublisher: U.S. Air Force | Note: Supports the primary dimensions, range, hard-target laser-guided weapon description, and public-domain image provenance for the primary artwork. | Accessed: 2026-07-02Raytheon Paveway III - Designation-Systems.NetPublisher: Designation-Systems.Net | Note: Supports Raytheon manufacturer context, the F-117 internal-carriage configuration, the 1987 service entry, production count, and GBU-27/B family designation details. | Accessed: 2026-07-02GBU-27 - GAO Weapons Acquisition ReportPublisher: Government Accountability Office | Note: Supports the GBU-27 production unit cost, inventory quantity, F-117 platform, first capability date, and 1990 Gulf War use in Operation Desert Storm. | Accessed: 2026-07-02Guided Bomb Unit-27 Smart WeaponsPublisher: GulfLINK | Note: Supports the GBU-24-derived F-117 carriage configuration, BLU-109 penetrator body, F-117 two-bomb carriage, guidance method, and hard-target role. | Accessed: 2026-07-02Air Force Ammunition Procurement FY19Publisher: U.S. Air Force | Note: Supports the BLU-109 warhead being listed on the GBU-27 weapon system in FY19 Air Force ammunition procurement material. | Accessed: 2026-07-02F-117 Combined Task Force TestingPublisher: Air Force Test Center | Note: Supports F-117 flight-test evaluation of the GBU-27A/B enhanced guided bomb unit. | Accessed: 2026-07-02Stealth Fighters Use New Munitions To Hit BaghdadPublisher: U.S. Air Force | Note: 2003 Iraq War: supports F-117 use of EGBU-27 against Baghdad targets during Operation Iraqi Freedom and identifies the enhanced guidance upgrade. | Accessed: 2026-07-02Operation Iraqi Freedom By The NumbersPublisher: U.S. Central Air Forces | Note: 2003 Iraq War: supports USCENTAF munitions-expended figures for EGBU-27 GPS/LGB and GBU-27 LGB during Operation Iraqi Freedom. | Accessed: 2026-07-02Kosovo/Operation Allied Force After-Action ReportPublisher: U.S. Department of Defense | Note: 1999 Kosovo War / Operation Allied Force: supports NATO campaign context and lists the GBU-27 among laser-guided bomb types used in the operation. | Accessed: 2026-07-02GBU-27 xxl - Wikimedia CommonsPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports public-domain U.S. Air Force image provenance for the secondary GBU-27 gallery image. | Accessed: 2026-07-02