OVERVIEW: The CBU-71A/B is an unguided, free-falling cluster bomb designed for wide-area attack using enhanced fragmentation submunitions. It disperses 650 BLU-86/B bomblets from a SUU-30A/B dispenser to neutralize personnel and soft targets.

DETAIL: The CBU-71A/B utilizes the SUU-30A/B tactical munitions dispenser, filled with 650 BLU-86/B fragmentation bomblets. The BLU-86/B is an improved anti-personnel and anti-material submunition based on the earlier BLU-63/B design, offering enhanced reliability and lethality. Upon release, the dispenser opens mid-air using a time-delay fuze or preset altimeter, deploying the bomblets over a wide impact area. Each bomblet is equipped with an impact fuze and internal fragmentation liner, optimized to shred soft targets and create high-density fragmentation patterns.

This munition was intended as an upgraded alternative to the CBU-58 series, providing better reliability in both bomblet function and dispersion pattern. The BLU-86/B design aimed to reduce dud rates and improve target area saturation. Despite its improvements, the system still posed unexploded ordnance risks, a known limitation of older cluster bomb systems.

CBU-71A/B was typically used in tactical strike missions against troop formations, air defense positions, logistics sites, and light vehicles. Aircraft deployed it from low to medium altitudes using pre-programmed release envelopes for optimal spread and coverage. Its unguided nature required careful mission planning and was best suited for large target zones.

NOTE:
IOC: Early 1970s
Operators: United States Air Force
Platform: F-4 Phantom II, A-7 Corsair II, F-105 Thunderchief, F-111 Aardvark, F-15E Strike Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon
Conflicts: Cold War-era stockpile, Vietnam-era deployment (limited), training inventories

SOURCE:
U.S. Air Force Armament Museum ; Jane’s Weapons: Air-Launched ; Department of Defense, Historical Munition Fact Sheets ; Federation of American Scientists (FAS) ; U.S. Navy Weapon Systems Explosive Ordnance Disposal publication