A Mark 77 bomb being loaded on an F/A-18 Hornet, 1993.

The Mark 77 bomb (MK-77) is a US 750-lb (340 kg) air-dropped incendiary bomb carrying 110 U.S. gallons (415 liters) of a fuel gel mix which is the direct successor to napalm. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 399 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1870 × 2810 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 399 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1870 × 2810 pixel, file size: 1. ... The Boeing (formerly McDonnell Douglas) F/A-18 Hornet is a modern all-weather carrier-capable strike fighter jet, designed to attack both ground and aerial targets. ... Motto: (Out Of Many, One) (traditional) In God We Trust (1956 to date) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington D.C. Largest city New York City None at federal level (English de facto) Government Federal constitutional republic  - President George Walker Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence from... Incendiary bombs are bombs designed to start fires or destroy sensitive equipment using materials such as napalm, thermite, or white phosphorus. ... The gallon (abbreviation: gal) is a unit of volume. ... The liter (spelled liter in American English and litre in Commonwealth English) is a unit of volume. ... A simulated Napalm explosion during a 2003 air show. ...

The MK-77 is the primary incendiary weapon currently in use by the United States military. Instead of the gasoline and the benzene fuel used in napalm, MK-77 use kerosene-based fuel, which has a lower concentration of benzene. The Pentagon has claimed that the MK-77 has less impact on the environment than napalm. The mixture reportedly also contains an oxidizing agent, making it more difficult to put out once ignited.^{[1] [2]}

The effects of MK-77 bombs are so similar to those of napalm that even many members of the US military continue to refer to them as "napalm" bombs in informal situations. (The official designation of Vietnam-era napalm bombs was the Mark 47.)

Use of aerial incendiary bombs against civilian populations, including against military targets in civilian areas, was banned in the 1980 United Nations Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons Protocol III. The US however, has only signed Articles I and II, not Protocols III, IV, And V. The foundation of the U.N. The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues. ... The United Nations Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW), concluded at Geneva on October 10, 1980 and entered into force in December 1983, seeks to prohibit or restrict the use of certain conventional weapons which are considered excessively injurious or that have indiscriminate effects. ...

Use in Iraq and Afghanistan

MK-77s were used by the US Marine Corps during the First Gulf War and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Approximately 500 were dropped, reportedly mostly on Iraqi-constructed oil filled trenches. They were also used at Tora Bora, in Afghanistan.^[2] United States Marine Corps Emblem The United States Marine Corps (USMC) is the second smallest of the five branches of the United States armed forces, with 170,000 active and 40,000 reserve Marines as of 2002. ... Combatants UN Coalition Republic of Iraq Commanders Norman Schwarzkopf, Peter de la Billière, Khalid bin Sultan, Saleh Al-Muhaya, Mohamed Hussein Tantawi Saddam Hussein Strength 883,863 360,000 Casualties 378 dead, 1,000 wounded see section below The Gulf War or the Persian Gulf War (16 January 1991... For other uses of the term, see Iraq war (disambiguation) The 2003 invasion of Iraq (also called the 2nd or 3rd Persian Gulf War) began on March 20, 2003, when forces belonging primarily to the United States and the United Kingdom invaded Iraq arguably without the explicit backing of the... Combatants United States, United Kingdom, Afghan Northern Alliance Taliban, al-Qaeda Commanders Bismillah Khan Tommy Franks Dan McNeill Osama bin Laden Strength n/a Unknown Casualties No Coalition deaths reported; Northern Alliance N/A At least 200 killed The Battle of Tora Bora was a military engagement that took place...

At least thirty MK-77s were also used by Marine Corps aviators over a three-day period during the 2003 invasion of Iraq, according to a June 2005 letter from the UK Ministry of Defense to former Labour MP Alice Mahon. This letter stated: The subject of this article is the 2003 invasion of Iraq. ... 2005 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Deaths in June June 27: Shelby Foote June 27: John T. Walton June 26: Richard Whiteley June 25: John Fiedler June 25: Chet Helms June 24: Paul Winchell June 21: Jaime Cardinal Sin June 20: Jack Kilby... The Labour Party has been, since its founding in the early 20th century, the principal political party of the left in England, Scotland and Wales. ... Alice Mahon (born September 28, 1937) is an English politician, trade unionist and Labour Party politician. ...

"The US destroyed its remaining Vietnam era napalm in 2001 but, according to the reports for 1 Marine Expeditionary Force (1 MEF) serving in Iraq in 2003, they used a total of 30 MK 77 weapons in Iraq between 31 March and 2 April 2003, against military targets away from civilian areas. The MK 77 firebomb does not have the same composition as napalm, although it has similar destructive characteristics. The Pentagon has told us that owing to the limited accuracy of the MK 77, it is not generally used in urban terrain or in areas where civilians are congregated."^[3]

This confirmed previous reports by U.S. Marine pilots and their commanders saying they had used Mark 77 firebombs on military targets:

Then the marine howitzers, with a range of 30 kilometres, opened a sustained barrage over the next eight hours. They were supported by US Navy aircraft which dropped 40,000 pounds of explosives and napalm, a US officer told the Herald.

"We napalmed both those [bridge] approaches," said Colonel James Alles, commander of Marine Air Group 11. "Unfortunately there were people there ... you could see them in the cockpit video. They were Iraqi soldiers."

According to the Italian public service broadcaster RAI's documentary, MK 77 had been used in Baghdad in 2003 in civilians-populated areas. However, there were never any confirmed reports of the use of incendiaries specifically against civilians. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Baghdad (Arabic: ) is the capital of Iraq and of Baghdad Governorate. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A civilian is a person who is not a member of a military. ...

In some cases where journalists reported that the U.S. military has used napalm, military spokesmen denied the use of "napalm" without making it clear that MK-77 bombs had actually been deployed instead.^[2][4]

Pentagon misinforms UK Ministry of Defence

U.S. officials incorrectly informed UK Ministry of Defence officials that MK-77s had not been used by the U.S. in Iraq, leading to Defence Minister Adam Ingram making inaccurate statements to the UK Parliament in January 2005.^[5] Later both Adam Ingram and Secretary of State for Defence John Reid apologised for these inaccurate statements being made to Members of Parliament. Main Building - The Headquarters of the Ministry of Defence, Whitehall, Westminster, London Tri-service badge of the UK armed forces The Ministry of Defence (MoD) is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and the headquarters of the UK military. ... Adam Paterson Ingram (born in Glasgow on February 1, 1947) is a Scottish politician, and Member of Parliament for East Kilbride. ... The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative institution in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories (it alone has parliamentary sovereignty). ... 2005 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Deaths in January • 29 Ephraim Kishon • 25 Philip Johnson • 23 Johnny Carson • 22 Parveen Babi • 20 Jan Nowak-Jeziorański • 17 Virginia Mayo • 17 Zhao Ziyang • 15... The Secretary of State for Defence is the senior United Kingdom government minister in charge of the Ministry of Defence. ... John Reid (born 8 May 1947) is a British politician who is Home Secretary and Member of Parliament for the Scottish constituency of Airdrie and Shotts. ... A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters of an electoral district to a parliament; in the Westminster system, specifically to the lower house. ...

Variants

Later variants of the bomb were modified to be carry a reduced load of 75 gallons (284 litres) of fuel, which resulted in the total weight decreasing to around 230 kg (550 lb).

• Mk 77 Mod 0 - 340 kg total weight with 416 litres of petroleum oil.
• Mk 77 Mod 1 - 227 kg total weight with 284 litres of petroleum oil.
• Mk 77 Mod 2
• Mk 77 Mod 3
• Mk 77 Mod 4 - Approx 230 kg total weight with 284 litres of fuel (Used during the 1991 Gulf War)
• Mk 77 Mod 5 - Approx 230 kg total weight with 284 litres of JP4/JP5 fuel and thickener (Used during the 2003 invasion of Iraq)
• Mk 78 - 340 kg total weight with 416 litres of petroleum oil. No longer in service.
• Mk 79 - 454 kg total weight with 424 litres of napalm and petrol. No longer in service.

Combatants UN Coalition Republic of Iraq Commanders Norman Schwarzkopf, Peter de la Billière, Khalid bin Sultan, Saleh Al-Muhaya, Mohamed Hussein Tantawi Saddam Hussein Strength 883,863 360,000 Casualties 378 dead, 1,000 wounded see section below The Gulf War or the Persian Gulf War (16 January 1991... The subject of this article is the 2003 invasion of Iraq. ...

References

• MK-77 Dumb Bombs, Federation of American Scientists
• Jane's Air-Launched Weapons Issue Thirty Six, Duncan Lennox, ISBN 0-7106-0866-7

The Federation of American Scientists (FAS)[1] is a non-profit organization formed in 1945 by scientists from the Manhattan Project who felt that scientists, engineers and other innovators had an ethical obligation to bring their knowledge and experience to bear on critical national decisions. ...

Endnotes

GlobalSecurity. ...

Use in Iraq

• 'Dead bodies are everywhere', Sydney Morning Herald, 22 March 2003 - probably the first published report on Mk 77 use in Iraq
• Napalm by another name: Pentagon denial goes up in flames, Sydney Morning Herald, 9 August 2003
• US admits it used napalm bombs in Iraq, The Independent, 10 August 2003
• US State Department Response to Illegal Weapon Allegations, 27 January 2005
• US lied to Britain over use of napalm in Iraq war, The Independent, 17 June 2005
• Parliament misled over firebomb use, Daily Telegraph, 20 June 2005
• The Hidden Massacre by Sigfrido Ranucci, Video documentary shows actual chemical bombing on civilians in Fallujah with testimony of interviewed U.S. soldiers - English, Italian and Arabic, Rai News 24, 8 November 2005
• Italian TV documentary alleges U.S. used chemical weapons in Falluhah, 7 November 2005
• US forces 'used chemical weapons' during assault on city of Fallujah, The Independent, 9 November 2005

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See also

• Napalm
• White phosphorus
• Fallujah, The Hidden Massacre
• Mark 81 bomb
• Mark 82 bomb
• Mark 83 bomb
• Mark 84 bomb
• Mark 117 bomb
• Mark 118 bomb
• Mark 7 nuclear bomb