레이저유도폭탄을 유도한 쿼드콥터 UAV

[위종민]

쿼드콥터 드론이 표적에 레이저를 비춰 GBU-12 LGB 4발을 유도했네요. 

이 드론은 1천~2천m에서 표적지시가 가능하고, 35분 체공이 가능하다고 합니다. JTAC이 레이저 표적 지시할 때 쓸 수 있는 도구가 하나 더 늘었네요. 

좋아, 이번 기사도 전문 번역해줄게. 먼저 원문을 충실히 옮기고, 그다음에 간단 요약도 덧붙일게.



번역 전문

쿼드콥터 드론, F-35A가 투하한 GBU-12 유도

2025년 8월 15일 오후 7시

PDW의 C100 쿼드콥터(미 육군도 도입)가 원거리에서 목표를 안전하게 레이저 조준(lase)하여 새로운 합동 화력 능력을 시연

미국의 AI·드론 기술 기업인 **퍼포먼스 드론 웍스(PDW)**는 지난달 “유기적 무인항공체(UAS) 화력지원 시험”을 실시했다고 발표했다. 이 시험에서 자사 C100 쿼드콥터형 다목적 드론과 미 공군 F-35A 라이트닝 II가 연동되었다. C100 하부에 장착된 **레오나르도 STAG5 레이저 표적 지시기(LTD)**를 활용해, UAS는 F-35가 투하한 **GBU-12 페이브웨이 II 정밀유도폭탄 4발(불발탄)**을 예정된 목표로 유도하는 데 성공했다고 PDW는 2025년 7월 23일 밝혔다.



시험 과정

PDW는 8월 12일 시험 영상을 공개했는데, C100이 점점 먼 거리(1000m, 1500m, 2000m)에서 목표를 레이저로 지시하며, GBU-12가 표적을 명중하는 장면을 보여주었다. F-35A의 투하 장면은 보이지 않았지만, 영상 서두에 F-35와 C100이 함께 잡히는 장면이 있다.

미 육군도 C100을 운용 중이다. 2025년 8월 3일, 173 공수여단이 C100 드론 4대와 FPV 드론 일식을 도입한다고 발표했다. 해당 부대는 3D 프린팅과 납땜으로 드론 부품을 제작·수리하며, C100에는 수류탄 발사기 및 보급용 페이로드까지 자작해 장착하고 있다.



의미와 활용성

미 공군은 이번 시험에 대한 별도의 발표를 하지 않았다. 그러나 PDW 설명에 따르면, 이번 성과는 합동최종공격통제관(JTAC)이 더 안전한 원거리에서 근접항공지원(CAS)과 공습을 유도할 수 있는 능력을 입증한 것이다.

즉, 저고도로 내려가 목표를 시각적으로 확인하기 어려운 F-35A가 굳이 위험을 무릅쓰지 않아도 되고, 기존처럼 다른 저고도 항공기나 대형 드론의 도움도 덜 필요해진다. 실제로 2024년 6월 미·필리핀 합동 사격 훈련에서는 F-35B가 GBU-32 JDAM을 투하할 때 필리핀 해군 드론과 C-130 수송기가 표적 확인을 담당했었다.

이번 시험에서 C100은 목표로부터 약 3km 떨어진 위치에서 35분간 체공하며 영상을 송신했고, 이를 통해 신속한 표적획득이 가능했다.

GBU-12는 Mk.82 500파운드 폭탄에 유도키트를 붙인 것으로, 사거리는 14.8km 이상이다. 업그레이드형 ‘페이브웨이 II 플러스’는 Mk.84(2000파운드), Mk.83(1000파운드)에도 적용 가능하다.



C100 플랫폼의 역할

PDW는 C100을 “유기적 화력 플랫폼”이라 칭하며, ISR(정보·감시·정찰), 표적 지시, 타격까지 수행할 수 있다고 강조했다. 이번 F-35와의 합동 시험은 원거리 레이저 표적 지시를 통한 간접화력, 근접항공지원, 해상 플랫폼 연계 가능성을 검증했다. 이를 통해 지상 JTAC 팀이 적에게 탐지될 위험을 줄이고, 동시에 F-35의 스텔스 성능을 살린 지상 타격이 가능해진다.

미 육군은 **아질 스피릿 25 다국적 훈련(2025년 8월, 조지아주 노리오 훈련장)**에서도 C100을 운용했다. C100은 최대 10km, 체공시간 74분, 다양한 EO 센서·소형 폭탄·보급물자·FPV 드론 모선 역할까지 수행할 수 있다.

PDW는 이미 2024년 12월 미 육군으로부터 1530만 달러 규모 계약을 따냈으며, INDOPACOM, EUCOM, CENTCOM에 배치될 예정이다.



핵심 요약

C100 쿼드콥터 드론이 F-35A가 투하한 GBU-12 폭탄을 레이저로 유도하는 시험 성공. 드론은 1000~2000m 거리에서 표적 지시, 35분 체공하며 영상 제공. 의미: 지상 JTAC 위험 감소 + F-35 저고도 진입 필요성 축소. 다목적 플랫폼: ISR, 레이저 표적 지시, 보급, 소형 무장 투하 가능. 미 육군도 도입해 유럽·인도태평양·중동 배치 예정.

Quadcopter Drone Guides GBU-12 LGBs Dropped by F-35A - The Aviationist

Quadcopter Drone Guides GBU-12 LGBs Dropped by F-35A

Quadcopter Drone Guides GBU-12 LGBs Dropped by F-35A

Published on: August 15, 2025 at 7:29 PM

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 Parth Satam

File photo of an F-35A Lightning II dropping an inert GBU-12 laser-guided bomb at the Utah Test and Training Range. (Image credit: USAF/Jim Haseltine)

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PDW’s C100 quadcopter, which has also been acquired by the U.S. Army, was used to safely lase targets from a standoff range, demonstrating a new joint fires capability.

Performance Drone Works (PDW), a U.S. AI and drone technology company, revealed last month an “organic unmanned aerial system (UAS) fire support test” where its proprietary C100 quadcopter-type multipurpose drone was paired with a U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II. Using a Leonardo STAG5 Laser Target Designator (LTD) mounted underneath the C100, the UAS “successfully guided four inert GBU-12 Paveway II precision munitions released from F-35 to predetermined targets,” PDW said on Jul. 23, 2025.

Contents

PDW’s C100 quadcopter, which has also been acquired by the U.S. Army, was used to safely lase targets from a standoff range, demonstrating a new joint fires capability.The testUtilityC100

The company released the footage of the test on Aug. 12, showing the inert GBU-12s landing on a target, with the C100 lasing it from progressively longer ranges at 1000, 1,500 and 2,000 meters and capturing the impact on all three instances. While the F-35A is not seen releasing the GBU-12, the beginning of the promotional video shows both the jet and the C100 in a single frame, where the jet streaks overhead at low altitude, and the latter is much lower in the foreground.

We reached out to PDW for more details about the test, but at the time of writing we have not yet received a response and we will update this article once we have more info.

PDW’s Group 2-class C100 UAS is also finding use in the U.S. Army. The service announced on Aug. 3, 2025 its 173rd Airborne Brigade is acquiring four PDW C100 drones and a “fleet of custom-built first-person view (FPV) drones” in line with the latest trends in land warfare.

In fact, Soldiers from the 173rd AB’s 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment designed, assembled and repaired many drone components using 3D-printing and soldering. For the C100, they also built grenade launchers and payload attachments for tactical battlefield delivery/logistics.

The test

The Air Force has not released any information on the test with the F-35. However, PDW’s description of the parameters and intended impacts suggests an ability to allow forward Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTAC) to more safely coordinate Close Air Support (CAS) and airstrikes from standoff distances.

“This exercise demonstrated the ability of an operator to safely mark targets from a standoff range with the C100 for joint fires capabilities without need for supporting aircraft,” PDW said in its press release. This means that the F-35A, which cannot be expected to fly at lower altitudes to visually identify land targets, does not have to rely on other low-flying aircraft or larger drones for that function.

Screengrab of the video of the test by Performance Drone Works showing an F-35A flying over a C100 drone during the joint fires test in late July 2025. (Image credit: PDW)

For instance, a June 2024 bilateral U.S.-Philippine live-fire drill saw Marine F-35Bs dropping GBU-32 JDAMS on floating targets, after they were identified by Philippine Navy drones and a C-130. On the other hand, in the PDW test, for the three separate engagements at ranges of 1,000, 1,500, and 2,000 meters between the C100 and the target, the C100 loitered for approximately 35 minutes and was separated by 3 km from the operator, capturing “a detailed visual description, enabling rapid target acquisition.”

The Paveway II is a guidance kit converting Mk.80 bombs into a precision munition, in this case a Mk.82 500 pound bomb in a GBU-12, and has a range of more than 14.8 km. The Paveway II Plus version, that is field programmable and offers improved accuracy, can also be installed on the Mk.84 2,000 pound bomb, becoming the GBU-10, and Mk.83 1,000 pound bomb, becoming the GBU-16.

Screengrabs of the test’s video showed the GBU-12s striking the land targets one after the other. The F-35A can carry GBU-12s both in its internal weapons bays and externally on the underwing pylons.

The PDW C100 takes off with the Leonardo STAG5 Laser Target Designator (LTD) during the test. (Image credit: PDW)

In this case, the jet might have carried one GBU-12 inside each of the bays, and the other two under the wings, or all fours externally, although two F-35s might have been present and not only one. On Feb. 25, 2016, F-35As from the 388th and 419th Fighter Wings based at Hill AFB, Utah, became the firsts from an operational F-35 Lightning II combat unit to drop GBU-12s.

Utility

PDW said that the C100 is an “organic fires platform” that extends soldiers’ effectiveness with a versatile payload suite supporting ISR, target designation, and kinetic effects. “This is the second in a series of demonstrations aimed to prove the C100 as the ultimate organic fires platform,” PDW CEO and co-founder Ryan Gury said in the press release. “The C100 offers a huge leap in tactical flexibility for the warfighter and PDW is ready to equip our forces with a system that can provide that support across various domains.”

The footage from the C100’s electro-optical system showing the inert GBU-12s striking the land target, with the C100 being at progressively longer ranges. (Image credit: PDW)

The demonstration with the F-35 validated the C100’s ability to allow “integrating LTD capability for rapid target handoff to indirect fire, close air support, and maritime platforms.” As a stand-off targeting solution, the C100’s “organic precision lasing from extended ranges” reduces exposure of ground-based JTAC teams to adversary detection. They are further away from the target, with the drone providing the laser designation, while also allowing the F-35’s stealth capabilities to be used in land strike situations.

A PDW C100 drone lifts off during a field demonstration at Norio Training Area, Georgia, Aug. 2, 2025, as part of Agile Spirit 25. The drone is equipped with a modular 3D-printed payload for medical or munition resupply. (Image credit: US Army National Guard/Sgt. 1st Class Brittany Conley)C100

The U.S. Army press release about the annual multinational Agile Spirit 25, held at Norio Training Area in Georgia on Aug. 2, 2025, said the C100 has a range of up to 10 kilometers and a flight endurance of 74 minutes. “The PDW C100 allows small units to push supplies or conduct reconnaissance deep into the battlespace without maintaining line-of-sight; an advantage especially critical in mountainous or contested terrain,” the statement added.

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Adrian Herrera, assigned to Hawkeye Platoon, Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade, inspects a 3D-printed grenade launcher attachment at Norio Training Area, Georgia, Aug. 2, 2025, during Agile Spirit 25. (Image credit: US Army National Guard/Sgt. 1st Class Brittany Conley

The drone is supported by four long legs for landing, four fold-out arms each carrying a two-bladed rotor, and is portable enough to be accommodated on the back of a land tactical vehicle. The U.S. Army’s press release quoted Staff Sgt. Nathaniel Daniels, platoon sergeant, who said the PDW C100 expands even further on the tactical use cases.

“Today, we saw the PDW C100 mission sets, able to drop speedballs or any [medical] supplies to a main or forward aid station,” Daniels explained. “If the mission is beyond 2 or 3 kilometers, we can upload the mission, and the drone will complete it autonomously and return.

PDW’s website and YouTube videos show the C100 being able to carry a variety of EO (Electro-Optical) sensors, small gravity bombs, tactical resupply payloads and being a mothership to smaller FPV drones and UGV (Unmanned Ground Vehicles), meeting the full-range of logistics, ISR and strike needs.

PDW announced on Dec. 23, 2024 landing a $15.3 million contract from the U.S. Army’s for the C100 in support of its ‘Transformation in Contact’ initiative. The service will deploy it in the Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM), European Command (EUCOM), and Central Command (CENTCOM).

In the same press release, PDW added that the Army also selected the C100 for its Directed Requirement for Company-Level sUAS (small UAS), providing soldiers with “medium-range reconnaissance and tactical air support in contested environments.”

TAGGED:F-35A Lightning IIGBU-12 Paveway IILaser Guided BombsU.S. Air Force

[백선호]

CAS할 때 쓸모가 있겠네요. 깊숙히 침투하는 임무에서는 못쓰겠고요. 특수부대가 갖고 들어가지 않는 한.

[위종민]

특수부대 작전 팀이 가져갈 정도의 크기와 무게라면, 레이저 지시뿐만 아니라 EO/IR 센서 같은 걸 달 수도 있으니 활용도가 아주 높을 것 같습니다.