An airborne rotary-wing laser platform providing terminal guidance for fixed-wing ordnance delivery should be treated as a ground-based laser for geometry.

• A. True
• B. False
• C. Not applicable
• D. Unknown

Answer: (A)

The key idea is that laser-guided terminal guidance is defined by the laser spot on the target, not by whether the laser originates from the ground or an airborne platform. When a rotary-wing designator illuminates a target for fixed-wing ordnance, the important geometric relationship is between the bomb, the illuminated spot, and the target. That spot serves as the reference point the seeker uses to steer the weapon, so for the purposes of calculating the delivery geometry you treat the laser as the same kind of reference source you would on the ground. The altitude or motion of the designating platform doesn’t change the essential geometry: the hit point is defined by where the laser spot lies on the target, and the weapon’s guidance follows that spot.