: how do fighters/bombers compensate for the sudden shift of weight once they dispense their ordinance?
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They do a whole lot of testing on which ordnance can be carried on which hardpoints and what performance restrictions that causes. Then they test dropping or launching the ordnance and see what happens. They also test asymmetric configurations, if only one side is dropped/launched. They figure out which ordnance configurations are allowed, allowed with restrictions, or not allowed. For instance, you may be able to carry 2 Mk84’s on the inner pylons, but not the outer, not because of the weight, but the asymmetric load if one hangs up. All that is in the flight manual for the airframe.
For bombers with internal bomb bays, the bays are pretty close to the center of gravity right between the wings (which is also close to the center of lift). Planes with external hardpoints are also pretty close to the CG. So the pilot just applies some stick input. This is also why you train, so pilots get used to it. The exception is something like a C-130 dropping a MOAB or LAPES, where the payload goes out the back. That takes a little more input and more training. They pretty much stopped doing LAPES because they crashed too many planes.
Launching/dropping one side is often more unsettling than centerline or dropping both.
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