Computation of the Circular Error Probable (CEP) and Confidence Intervals in Bombing Tests

Abstract : The objective of this report is to assess the performance of a radar bomb director (RBD) by computing its CEP (Circular Error Probable) on the basis of measurements of miss distances in actual bomb drops falling under an uncorrelated bivariate normal distribution. in addition, confidence intervals (CIs) for the CEP are established. On the basis of these results and the assignment of a nominal CEP, one can also decide whether or not the statistical accuracy requirements of the RBD have been met, or whether further testing is required. An available Fortran 95 computer program is described, which for a given set of bomb drops, generates an estimated CEP and three different CIs: a conventional interval, a minimum one, and when possible, a symmetric one. The acceptance or nonacceptance of the RBD's performance, or whether more testing is needed, is also an optional part of the output.