Gravity bomb

Technicians maintaining a B-61 gravity bomb. This nuclear munition has been identified as one that could be modified to hit hardened underground targets.

Gravity bomb is a new term to describe an aircraft-delivered bomb that does not contain a guidance system.

Until the later half of World War II this described all aircraft bombs, and described the vast majority until the late 1980s.

Then, with the dramatically increased use of precision guided munitions, a new term was needed to separate smart bombs from those that weren't. Dumb bomb was used for a time, but many in military circles felt it sounded too trite, and eventually gravity bomb gained currency.

Special types:

parachute-retarded gravity bomb
nuclear gravity bomb