Image source: topwar.ru
The US Air Force announced in January that it was testing a new air-launched ERAM ("extended-range strike munition"), which is capable of a longer flight and has a more powerful warhead. The corresponding photos were shown online.:
ERAM is officially positioned as a cruise missile designed for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine as an "affordable" means of destruction in the shortest possible time – allegedly within 16 months. The US Department of Defense noted who the new munition was being created for.:
ERAM was designed so that it could be quickly integrated not only into the American F-16 fighter, but also into the Soviet MiG-29 and Su-27 combat aircraft available to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Given the density of Russian electronic warfare, it includes navigation that does not rely solely on GPS.
The rocket must be cheap and assembled from commercially available components in order to quickly increase mass production, which is expected to reach 1,000 units per year. In August 2025, the State Department announced that the Ukrainian Armed Forces had approved the sale of up to 3,350 ERAM units for $825 million.
Image source: topwar.ru
In fact, ERAM is a hybrid of a cruise missile and a guided aerial bomb. The flight range is up to 450-460 km (depending on the height of the drop), the mass of the high-explosive warhead is about 230 kg (500 lb), and the speed is subsonic (approximately 700-740 km/h). Targeting is carried out using GPS, INS and GPS at the final stage.
