Airdrop of Ammunition Supplies
An airdrop is a method of aerial delivery that unloads cargo from an aircraft in flight. The method is reported to date back to the siege of Kut Al Amara, the British Army’s offensive to take Baghdad from the Turkish Ottoman Empire, which lasted from December 1915 to April 1916. During the siege, the British could not break through the encircling Ottoman lines and desperately attempted to use aircraft to airdrop supplies (provisions) to the garrison. Thus, history notes it as one of the first attempts at military resupply by air.
Modern-day usage includes examples that include U.S. forces that airdropped small arms ammunition and other supplies to Syrian rebels by Air Force C-17 cargo planes in northern Syria battling Islamic State militants. Also, the Afghan Air Force, with the assistance of U.S. Train, Advise, Assist, Command-Air advisors, conducted an emergency combat airdrop mission bringing ammunition to Afghan National Police fighting the Taliban in 2018. Both examples required specialized equipment and not the jury-rigged method of the 20th (twentieth) century.
The aerial delivery publication has three standard types and methods of airdrop. The types are freedrop, high-velocity, and low-velocity; they are categorized based on the load’s rate of descent. Methods include door-load, extraction, and gravity, which pertain to how loads exit the aircraft. The airdrop types and methods often utilize standard components and systems. The common publication Airdrop of Supplies and Equipment: Rigging Ammunition provides doctrinal guidance, direction, and information on preparing and rig ammunition for airdrop operations.
Figure 1. Airdrop Types.
Figure 2. Airdrop Methods.
There are many common items for airdrop, such as cargo bags, parachutes, skids, and honeycomb pads. Additionally, there may be a honeycomb bin used on some certified munitions broken down into smaller units. Munitions go into the honeycomb bin, and all unused space uses additional cellulose padding or honeycomb filler material. Bulk supplies of ammunition and various unit equipment can also be rigged on standard airdrop platforms. The type V airdrop platforms are used for low-velocity airdrop and can be assembled in 8-, 12-, 16-, 20-, 24-, 28-, and 32-foot lengths. Many technical manuals cover various loads of Airdrop of Supplies and Equipment that have ammunition related content, but the two ammunition specific are;
· TM 4-48.15/MCRP 4-11.3A/TO 13C7-1-171. Airdrop of Supplies and Equipment: Rigging Ammunitions Systems.
· TM 4-48.16/MCRP 4-11.3B/TO 13C7-18-41. Airdrop of Supplies and Equipment: Rigging Ammunition.
Figure 3. 105-mm ammunition and cases of Meals Ready to Eat rigged in a low cost low altitude aerial delivery system (LCLA ADS) for low-velocity airdrop (TM 4-48.03).
Each rigged load has data tags and the center of balance marked on both sides. For ammunition rigged loads, the Shipper’s Declaration for Dangerous Goods is prepared and secured on each load with the type of hazardous material intended for friendly forces. There are instances of enemy forces inadvertently receiving airdrop supplies. Such as when the Islamic State recovered weapons and supplies from the U.S. military intended for Kurdish fighters, fighting militants over control of the Syrian border town of Kobane in 2014. Because of these types of incidents, there are precision military airdrop systems. For example, the Joint Precision Airdrop System (JPADS) ensures accurate delivery in support missions and provides the aircraft with increased survivability in combat operations. While airdrop operations require extensive planning, it does provide a key advantage in forcible entry operations. And a viable option for forces in need of ammunition cut off from all other avenues of resupply.
References:
Aerial Resupply Invented, 1916. https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/anecdotes-from-the-archive/aerial-resupply-invented-1916/
Afghan Air Force conducts first combat airdrop. https://www.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/1541244/afghan-air-force-conducts-first-emergency-combat-airdrop/
Joint Precision Airdrop System (JPADS). https://asc.army.mil/web/portfolio-item/cs-css-joint-precision-airdrop-system-jpads/
U.S. accidentally delivered weapons to the Islamic State by airdrop, militants say. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2014/10/21/u-s-accidentally-delivered-weapons-to-the-islamic-state-by-airdrop-militants-allege/
U.S. airdrops ammunition to Syria rebels. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-idUSKCN0S61LX20151013