2001 War in Afghanistan

GBU-31 JDAM in the 2001 War in Afghanistan

U.S. Air Force sources document GBU-31 JDAM use in Afghanistan from the opening Operation Enduring Freedom air campaign through later close-air-support strikes by B-1B and F-15E aircraft.

Weapon profileGBU-31 JDAM (Mk 84 / BLU-109)
SideUnited States, NATO, and Afghan government forcesRoleFire Support
GBU-31 JDAM (Mk 84 / BLU-109), 2,000-pound GPS/INS-guided bomb configuration, Munitions - 2001 War in Afghanistan
Image source: US Navy GBU-31 loading photo

Evidence Map

ClaimSources
U.S. B-1B aircraft carried and used GBU-31 JDAMs during the opening Operation Enduring Freedom campaign in Afghanistan.

Sources: Mountain Home OEF Start

JDAMs were used for close air support in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom.

Sources: Air Force JDAM Combat Use

F-15E and B-1B aircraft dropped GBU-31s in Afghanistan in 2007 and 2008 close-air-support missions.

Sources: Oct. 4 Airpower Summary, Oct. 8 Airpower Summary, Nov. 28 Airpower Summary, June 22 Airpower Summary

The official daily summaries identify GBU-31 use but usually do not identify the specific Mk 84 or BLU-109 bomb body for each Afghanistan strike.

Sources: Oct. 4 Airpower Summary, Oct. 8 Airpower Summary, Nov. 28 Airpower Summary, June 22 Airpower Summary

Timeline

GBU-31 JDAM (Mk 84 / BLU-109) In 2001 War in Afghanistan

  1. B-1B GBU-31s open Operation Enduring Freedom

    Mountain Home Air Force Base history says 34th Bomb Squadron B-1B Lancers loaded with GBU-31 JDAMs helped open the war against Taliban and al-Qaeda targets.

    Sources: Mountain Home OEF Start

  2. F-15 strike at Bari Kowt

    A U.S. Air Force airpower summary reported an F-15 strike with a GBU-31 against a cave entrance in Bari Kowt.

    Sources: Oct. 4 Airpower Summary

  3. F-15E GBU-31 strikes in Bari Kowt

    A U.S. Air Force airpower summary reported F-15E GBU-31 use against an enemy defensive position and another enemy site in Bari Kowt.

    Sources: Oct. 8 Airpower Summary

  4. F-15E and B-1B GBU-31 strikes

    Combined Air and Space Operations Center reporting documented GBU-31 use by an F-15E in Bari Kowt, by a B-1B in Garmsir, and by an F-15E in Kandahar.

    Sources: Nov. 28 Airpower Summary

  5. Bari Kowt and De Maymand strikes

    A U.S. Air Force airpower summary reported guided bomb unit-31 use near Bari Kowt and a B-1B GBU-31 strike against enemy rocket positions near De Maymand.

    Sources: June 22 Airpower Summary

Documented Use

Direct proof of use

The GBU-31 JDAM was used by U.S. air forces in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom. A Mountain Home Air Force Base history states that the 34th Bomb Squadron opened the war on October 7, 2001 with B-1B Lancers loaded with GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack Munitions, and says the squadron released more than 6.9 million pounds of munitions against Taliban and al-Qaeda targets during its first three months in theater.

Later U.S. Air Force airpower summaries document individual Afghanistan strikes with GBU-31s. On November 28, 2007, an F-15E dropped a GBU-31 in Bari Kowt, a B-1B used a GBU-31 and GBU-38s against firing positions in Garmsir, and an F-15E used a GBU-31 and GBU-38s in Kandahar.

Sources: Mountain Home OEF Start, Nov. 28 Airpower Summary

Timeline

The available official reporting places GBU-31 use at both the beginning of the war and in later counterinsurgency close-air-support missions. Air Force Materiel Command reporting described JDAMs as regular close-air-support weapons for B-52s during Operation Enduring Freedom, while daily Combined Air and Space Operations Center summaries from 2007 and 2008 recorded F-15E and B-1B GBU-31 drops in eastern and southern Afghanistan.

Sources: Air Force JDAM Combat Use, Oct. 4 Airpower Summary, Oct. 8 Airpower Summary, Nov. 28 Airpower Summary, June 22 Airpower Summary

Narrative

In the Afghanistan theater, the GBU-31 appears in official sources as an air-delivered precision munition used from bomber and strike-fighter platforms. Opening-war accounts connect B-1B Lancers carrying GBU-31s to attacks on Taliban and al-Qaeda targets, while later airpower summaries show the weapon employed in close air support for International Security Assistance Force, Afghan security forces, and coalition troops.

The documented target sets in these summaries include cave entrances, enemy defensive positions, firing positions, rocket positions, enemy personnel, and fighting positions. The public daily summaries normally identify the munition as GBU-31 or guided bomb unit-31, but they do not specify whether each strike used the Mk 84 general-purpose or BLU-109 penetrator body.

Sources: Mountain Home OEF Start, Oct. 4 Airpower Summary, Oct. 8 Airpower Summary, Nov. 28 Airpower Summary, June 22 Airpower Summary

Related Weapons by Role

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Sources