A flying bomb is a small aircraft carrying a large explosive warhead. In contrast to a bomber aircraft, which is intended to release bombs and then return to its base for re-use, a flying bomb crashes into its target and is therefore itself destroyed in its attack. Flying bombs may be powered or unpowered, piloted or unpiloted, although unpowered flying bombs such as the German Hagelkorn ("Hailstone") and Fritz X designed during World War II are usually referred to as glide bombs. Flying bombs differ from missiles in that a flying bomb is equipped with wings to provide lift over a long distance, where missiles are launched on ballistic trajectories and do not rely on lift to reach their targets.
The term flying bomb is most frequently associated with two specific weapons, the German V1 and the Japanese Ohka. The former was unpiloted, the latter carried a pilot on a kamikaze mission.
Perhaps because of these Axis connotations, the term cruise missile is more commonly used in English for modern munitions that might otherwise fit the definition of a flying bomb.
Civilian airliners commandeered as terrorist weapons intended to crash into targets, as in the September 11 terrorist attacks, are frequently referred to as "flying bombs" in the media.