BAPI (bomb)

BAPI (Bomba Anti-Pista)
Green cylindrical bomb resting on a blue metal stand in a museum.
BAPI on display in 2019 at the Memorial Aeroespacial Brasileiro in São José dos Campos, Brazil. The label beneath the bomb reads "BAPI" and "BOMBA ANTIPISTA".
TypeAnti-runway penetration bomb
Place of origin Brazil
Service history
Used byEmblem of the Brazilian Air Force Brazilian Air Force
Production history
DesignerCTA / IAE
Bernardini
DesignedApril 1987 (project start)
Specifications (BAPI)
Mass238 kg (525 lb)
Length2.69 m (8 ft 10 in)
Diameter231 mm (9.1 in)
FillingExplosive charge
Filling weight13 kg (29 lb)
Detonation
mechanism
Delayed detonation (proposed 1989 design)

BAPI (an acronym for the Portuguese name Bomba Anti-Pista) is a Brazilian anti-runway penetration bomb, primarily intended to disable runways. Other targets include taxiways, aircraft parking areas, and hangars. Development of the weapon began in 1987 at the Divisão de Sistemas Bélicos of the then Instituto de Atividades Espaciais (IAE), which operated within the Centro Técnico Aeroespacial (CTA).

The weapon was developed for the Brazilian Air Force (FAB). Bernardini collaborated with CTA on the project, according to a report published in May 1989. The 1989 proposal called for the bomb to be released at low altitude and high speed, with parachute braking followed by ignition of a rocket motor to accelerate it towards the target. Delayed detonation after penetration of the concrete was intended to create a crater and damage the runway structure. Several design features were based on the French Matra Durandal bomb. The Brazilian Air Force’s A-1/AMX and F-5 aircraft are equipped to carry BAPI bombs.

Other weapons intended for attacks on airfield runways include the French Durandal (designated BLU-107/B in U.S. service) and BAP 100, the British JP233, the American CBU-98/B project, the Russian BETAB-500 and its BETAB-500ShP variant, and the Indian DRDO SAAW. BAPI, like the Durandal, was designed as a single penetration bomb. Instead of a single bomb, JP233 delivered submunitions from dispensers. A dispenser carrying submunitions was also planned for the CBU-98/B. SAAW was designed for stand-off attacks using precision guidance.

Development and testing

Work on BAPI began in April 1987 at the Divisão de Sistemas Bélicos (ESB) of the Instituto de Atividades Espaciais (IAE), within the Centro Técnico Aeroespacial (CTA). The division was established in 1976 and developed aircraft weapons in Brazil for the Brazilian Air Force. The first group of conventional weapons developed in Brazil for the AMX programme included an anti-runway bomb, retarded bombs, grenade-dispensing bombs and incendiary bombs.

In 1985, BAPI was among the first four weapons given development priority in the Brazilian Air Force's AMX planning list.

According to a May 1989 report in International Defense Review, Bernardini developed BAPI in collaboration with CTA. The report also mentioned that deliveries to the Brazilian Air Force had already begun and that the weapon was being offered for export. A December 1989 report on the Brazilian defence industry also mentioned BAPI as one of Bernardini's products.

Brazil's Ministry of Aeronautics included a wholly domestic anti-runway bomb in its weapons-systems research and development programme. Compatibility with the AT-26, F-5, F-103 and AM-X aircraft was a requirement of the 1989 BAPI design. In a 2004 parliamentary speech, the anti-runway bomb was identified as one of CTA's projects for homologation and qualification on F-5 aircraft.

A smaller, cheaper bomb (BAPI-100) was proposed in 1989. Inspired by the French BAP 100, it was intended to complement the BAPI in attacking roads, bridges, fortifications, and runways. The proposed size and weight were smaller, with the body diameter roughly half that of the BAPI and the total weight about one-fifth.

IAE commenced phase 2 of its weapons development in 1985. In this phase, they used their own engineering designs for several systems, including the anti-runway bomb. The LAME (Laboratory of Energetic Materials) also worked on the BAPI.

The performance figures published in 1989 came from computer simulations and monorail tests at CTA. For a reinforced concrete runway 40 cm (16 in) thick, the figures indicated a crater approximately 5 m (16 ft) across and 2 m (6.6 ft) deep. The adjacent concrete slabs were expected to be lifted and the slabs were expected to be weakened, with fragments spread over an area of c. 150 to 200 m2 (1,600 to 2,200 sq ft).

Development and certification work on BAPI included flight testing. IAE documentation archived in August 2004 described BAPI as a developed and homologated product.

The present IAE has its origins in the Instituto de Pesquisas e Desenvolvimento (IPD), established in 1954 at the then Centro Técnico de Aeronáutica. In 1991, IPD and the Instituto de Atividades Espaciais merged to form the present Instituto de Aeronáutica e Espaço (IAE), with a mission of aerospace research and development.

Notes

  1. ↑ The May 1989 report in International Defense Review describes BAPI as a 200 kg weapon.

References

  1. ↑ Peel, Mike (20 March 2019). "At Memorial Aeroespacial Brasileiro 2019 030.jpg". Wikimedia Commons (Photograph). Retrieved 2026-11-04.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ARM – Bombas e Espoletas (in Portuguese). Escola de Especialistas de Aeronáutica. pp. 37–38. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Ferreira, José Alberto Fernandes (October 1989). "Bomba Antipista: uma necessidade" (PDF). Revista da UNIFA (in Portuguese). 5 (7). Universidade da Força Aérea: 28–33. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Bomba Antipista (BAPI)". Instituto de Aeronáutica e Espaço (in Portuguese). Centro Técnico Aeroespacial. Archived from the original on 12 March 2007. Retrieved 2026-09-02.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "Histórico". Instituto de Aeronáutica e Espaço (in Portuguese). Força Aérea Brasileira / Departamento de Ciência e Tecnologia Aeroespacial. Retrieved 2026-04-25.
  6. 1 2 "The longest-serving fighter on the continent". Pucará. No. 35. February 2026. p. 23. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  7. 1 2 "A-1 – AMX". Academia da Força Aérea (in Portuguese). Força Aérea Brasileira. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  8. 1 2 3 4 "Brazilian runway-busting bomb". International Defense Review. 22 (5): 687. May 1989. ISSN 0020-6512.
  9. ↑ Ferreira, José Alberto Fernandes (October 1989). "Bomba Antipista: uma necessidade" (PDF). Revista da UNIFA (in Portuguese). 5 (7). Universidade da Força Aérea: 30. Retrieved 2026-09-01. O Projeto da Bomba Antipista Brasileiro, BAPI, teve seu início efetivo em abril de 1987
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 Ferreira, César A. (1 June 2015). "BAPI – Bomba Anti Pista". Portal Defesa (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2026-09-08.
  11. ↑ Casella, Leandro; Cunha, Rudnei Dias da (2016). Northrop F-5 no Brasil / Northrop F-5 in Brazil (in Portuguese and English) (Revised ed.). Porto Alegre: Edição dos Autores. p. 175. ISBN 978-85-912463-0-4.
  12. ↑ Moralez, João Paulo (20 December 2023). "AMX e o seu poder de fogo". Tecnologia & Defesa (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  13. ↑ Campos (23 September 2025). "Caças bombardeiros obsoletos da FAB vão para fronteira com a Venezuela enquanto Lula discursa na ONU: "Apoio de fogo"". Revista Sociedade Militar (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2026-09-02.
  14. ↑ "BLU-107/B Durandal". National Museum of the United States Air Force. United States Air Force. Retrieved 2026-11-09.
  15. 1 2 Tugayé, Jean (2006). Un demi-siècle d'aéronautique en France: Les armements aéronautiques (hors missiles) (PDF) (in French). Centre des hautes études de l'armement, Division Histoire de l'armement. pp. 52–58. Retrieved 2026-09-02.
  16. ↑ "BETAB-500: Concrete-Piercing Bomb". SRPE Bazalt (PDF) (in Russian and English). SRPE Bazalt. pp. 4, 34. Retrieved 2026-11-05.
  17. ↑ "BETAB-500ShP: Concrete-Piercing Bomb". SRPE Bazalt (PDF) (in Russian and English). SRPE Bazalt. p. 34. Retrieved 2026-11-09.
  18. ↑ "Hunting JP233 Anti-Runway Weapon". National Museum of the United States Air Force. United States Air Force. Retrieved 2026-09-02.
  19. ↑ Dullum, Ove (1 February 2008). Cluster weapons – military utility and alternatives (PDF) (Report). Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI). p. 134. ISBN 978-82-464-1318-1.
  20. ↑ "Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon (SAAW)". Bharat Dynamics Limited. Government of India. Retrieved 2026-09-02.
  21. ↑ Moralez, João Paulo (10 May 2023). "MAR-1 – O míssil antirradiação brasileiro". Tecnologia & Defesa (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2026-09-02.
  22. ↑ "Adelphi – The Pioneer Squadron". Pucará Defensa. No. 29. 17 February 2025. p. 40. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  23. ↑ Luria, René (December 1989). "The Brazilian defense industry — Part 2: the ground, naval and aerospace sectors". International Defense Review. 22 (12): 1676. ISSN 0020-6512.
  24. ↑ "Diário da Câmara dos Deputados" (PDF). Câmara dos Deputados (in Portuguese). 5 October 2004. p. 42739. Retrieved 2026-09-02.
  25. ↑ Bellintani, Adriana Iop; Bellintani, Mauro, eds. (2023). DCTA: 70 anos de ciência, tecnologia e inovação (in Portuguese) (1 ed.). São José dos Campos: ITA/DCTA. p. 54. ISBN 978-65-88842-07-2. sistemas com maior complexidade tecnológica, aplicando-se soluções de engenharia de concepção própria.
  26. ↑ "LAME – Laboratório de Materiais Energéticos". Instituto de Aeronáutica e Espaço (in Portuguese). Comando da Aeronáutica. 29 August 2018. Archived from the original on 2 January 2019. Retrieved 2026-09-02.
  27. ↑ Instituto de Estudos Avançados. Fatos históricos 2021 (PDF) (Report) (in Portuguese). Instituto de Estudos Avançados. PDF p. 5, “Cerimônia de Passagem de Comando”. ensaios em voo de desenvolvimento e certificação dos seguintes armamentos nacionais: bomba anti-pista (BAPI)
  28. ↑ Instituto de Aeronáutica e Espaço. "Bomba Antipista (BAPI)" (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 15 August 2004. Retrieved 7 September 2026.
  29. ↑ "Instituto de Aeronáutica e Espaço (IAE)". Ministério da Defesa (in Portuguese). Governo do Brasil. Retrieved 2026-04-25.