US Approves Sale of Hellfire Bombs and Missiles to Israel

The U.S. State Department has approved a major sale of aircraft and helicopter weapons to Israel.

The announcement was published on the official website of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency.

As part of Israel’s request, the United States approved the possible sale of 4,966 aircraft bombs and 3,000 AGM-114 Hellfire anti-tank missiles for AH-64 Apache helicopters.

In particular, the agreement includes the supply of 2,166 GBU-39/B SDB-I precision-guided bombs and 2,800 Mk.82 free-fall bombs weighing 227 kg.

In addition, it is planned to purchase high-precision JDAM kits for various types of aircraft bombs, including Mk.84, concrete-piercing BLU-109 and GBU-38v1, namely

• 13,000 sets of JDAM guidance system kits: KMU-556E/B, KMU-556H/B (with SABR-Y), KMU-556F/B, KMU-556J/B – for MK-84 aircraft bombs.
• 3,475 sets of JDAM guidance system kits: KMU-557E/B, KMU-557F/B, KMU-557H/B (with SABR-Y), KMU-557J/B – for BLU-109 aircraft bombs.
• 1,004 sets of JDAM guidance system kits: KMU-572E/B, KMU-572F/B, KMU-572H/B (with SABR-Y), KMU-572J/B – for GBU-38v1.
• 17,475 FMU-152A/B detonators.

The estimated value of this agreement is $6.75 billion, and delivery is expected to begin in 2025. Deliveries will be made using a combination of US Department of Defense stocks and new products from industry.

A separate contract also approved the possible sale of AGM-114 Hellfire missiles.

The Israeli government has requested the purchase of 3,000 AGM-114 Hellfire air-to-ground missiles, with the option of choosing one or any combination of variants: R3, F, F/A, K1, K1A, K2, K3, K3A, KA, N, N3, and/or R.

The estimated value of the deal is $660 million. Deliveries are expected to start in 2028.

Earlier, Militarnyi reported that the US State Department was preparing to sell $8 billion worth of weapons to Israel.

According to the publication, the State Department told Congress that the deal was aimed at “supporting Israel’s long-term security by replenishing critical ammunition and air defense capabilities.”