A monster bomb with an explosive blast so massive it is similar to a nuclear weapon is scheduled to be tested at Eglin Air Force Base next week, possibly as early as Tuesday, a Pentagon official said.

Eglin would not comment on the test of the 21,000-pound MOAB, short for "massive ordnance air burst," and referred all questions about its development and testing to Pentagon officials.

So far, the MOAB has not been tested, said Gloria Cales, a spokeswoman for Air Force Headquarters at the Pentagon.
"Eglin's Air Force Research Lab started developing the technology for the weapon in 2002, it was scheduled to be ready for use this year " she said.
It is likely this test might be in preparation for an air strike on Iraq.

The MOAB would be used in Iraq primarily and intentionally to cause high casualties. While US sources may say that the MOAB would be used in open country against the Iraqi military, there is every indication that the Iraqis will concentrate their forces in and around cities, especially Baghdad.

When and if the United States does go to war, military sources say the United States is preparing a monster new weapon to be used during the first nights.
It's called MOAB, short for 'massive ordnance air burst' bomb. It is a modern, bigger version of the 15,000-pound 'Daisy Cutter' used in Vietnam, the Persian Gulf War and Afghanistan.

Sources say MOAB -- still experimental -- is a 21,000-pound bomb that will be pushed out the back of a C-130 transport and guided by satellite. Because it is not dropped by parachute, as was the old Daisy Cutter, the aircraft can let it go from far higher altitudes, making it safer for U.S. pilots.
The MOAB's massive explosive punch, sources say, is similar to a small nuclear weapon.

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