FLIGHT TRAINING INSTRUCTION T-45 WEAPONS/STRIKE - Cnatra

T-45 WEAPONS/STRIKE CHAPTER THREE
The “Z” Diagram and Basic Weaponeering
“Z” Diagrams are presentations of pattern and weaponeering information included on briefing
boards and kneeboard cards. In the Fleet, you will be responsible for developing your own “Z”
diagram tailored to the specifics of your mission. In the Training Command, these “Z” diagrams
are prepared for you. It is important for you to understand the concepts of weaponeering and the
basic components of the “Z” diagram so you can apply those concepts to your follow-on fleet
aircraft training. The “Z” diagrams and terminology used in Fleet aircraft will vary slightly from
fleet to fleet and fleet to service based on training and tactics employed. The concepts, however,
are all the same.
Weapons delivery planning always begins with the target we plan to attack. The target type will
drive the type of ordnance we bring to the fight. In Basic Conventional Weapons Delivery
(BCWD), in order to give ourselves the best opportunity to deliver that ordnance as accurately on
the target as possible, we would want to drop as close to the target as we possibly can. The
steeper the planned dive, the more accurate the hits will be due to error sensitivities.
Threat is the next item to be considered. The threat will drive our tactics. How low can we go?
There are four reasons which determine how low we can go and why we DO NOT want to
release lower than our minimum release altitude. They are: 1) Enemy Threat, 2) Weapon
Fragmentation, 3) Weapon Arming Time (fusing time), and 4) Terrain. The most critical of these
will drive our tactics and be the determining factor of our release altitude.
Figure 3-15 “Z” Diagram
First, let’s discuss Enemy Threat. As previously stated, the closer we can get to the target, the
more accurate we can be. However, just as we would not like to be fired upon while attacking
the enemy, the enemy does not want to be fired upon in the first place. He will set up his
defenses to prevent us from attacking, creating a threat envelope. Our job is to get as close to
that threat envelope as possible, deliver our weapons, and get ourselves back to our altitude
WEAPONS DELIVERY THEORY AND PRINCIPLES 3-13