Independent Working Group Report: Missile Defense, the Space Relationship, and the Twenty-First Century. »»
February 8, 2012
IWG Report 2009
Independent Working Group Report: Missile Defense, the Space Relationship, and the Twenty-First Century. »»
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AGM-84H SLAM-ER
| Country: | United States of America |
|---|---|
| Alternate Name: | Harpoon |
| Class: | ALCM |
| Target: | Ship |
| Length: | 4.37 m |
| Diameter: | 0.34 m |
| Wingspan: | 2.18 m |
| Launch Weight: | 680.00 kg |
| Payload: | 247 kg HE, penetration |
| Propulsion: | Turbofan |
| Range: | 280.00 km |
| Guidance: | INS, GPS, IIR, datalink |
| Status: | Operational |
| In Service: | 1999-present |
| Exported: | South Korea |
Details
The AGM-84H SLAM-ER “Harpoon” is a short-range, air-launched, turbofan propelled, single warhead, air-to-surface cruise missile developed and manufactured by the United States. Ship-, submarine-, and ground-launched versions also exist.
In 1971, McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) began development of the “Harpoon” family of missiles, which included the air-launched AGM-84, the submarine-launched UGM-84, and the ship-launched RGM-84. The idea was to create a standard cruise missile for the U.S. Navy and Air Force designed to sink warships in an open-ocean environment. Other weapons, such as the RGM-109 “Tomahawk,” can also be used against ships, but the “Harpoon” and the AGM-119 “Penguin” (the AGM-119 was never put into US service) are the only missiles used by the U.S. military with anti-ship warfare as their primary mission.
In 1973, the U.S. Navy selected the “Harpoon” as its primary anti-ship missile. All three versions, the RGM-84, the AGM-84, and the UGM-84, entered service in 1977. The upgraded AGM-84H SLAM-ER “Harpoon” was completed in 1999 and deployed on F/A-18C/D Hornet, F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, P-3C Orion, and S-3B Viking aircraft, planned for clearance on F-15E Fighting Eagle, B-1B Lancer, B-2A Spirit, and B-52 Stratofortress aircraft.
The AGM-84E SLAM (Stand-off Land Attack Missile) was designed to be used against land-based targets. Rather than designing and building a new missile for this utility, the USAF decided to redesign the "Harpoon." The original SLAM variants used the "Harpoon" airframe, engine, and warhead. The AGM-84H SLAM-ER (SLAM-Expanded Response) continues the modification project to give the missile an extended range and the ability to hit moving ships or land-based targets. The AGM-84H SLAM-ER incorporates an improved imaging infra-red (IIR) seeker and wings derived from the RGM/UGM-109 “Tomahawk” cruise missile. The SLAM-ER is 4.37 m in length, has a body diameter of 0.34 m, and has a launch weight of 680 kg. After its release from the aircraft, the missile descends to a low cruise altitude and is powered by a turbofan engine during the midcourse phase. Its inertial navigation system (INS) provides guidance during the midcourse phase, with an active radar providing guidance in the terminal phase. The missile carries a 247 kg high explosive blast penetration warhead, has a range of 280 km, and an accuracy of about 3 m CEP.
About 600 AGM-84E SLAM missiles were built and delivered to the USAF before production was finished in 1996. Some SLAM missiles were upgraded to the SLAM-ER variant following initial SLAM-ER missile production in 1997. Between new production and upgrade kits, a total of 670 SLAM-ER variant missiles were expected to be produced by 2004. The U.S. launched AGM-84E SLAM-ER missiles against targets in Iraq in 1999 and 2003.(1)
Footnotes
- Jane’s Strategic Weapons Systems, Issue 50, ed. Duncan Lennox, (Surrey: Jane’s Information Group, January 2009) 188-191; GlobalSecurity.org, “AGM-84 Harpoon / SLAM [Stand-Off Land Attack Missile],” available at http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/munitions/agm-84.htm, accessed on 13 January 2011; The Boeing Company, “Harpoon,” available at http://www.boeing.com/defense-space/missiles/harpoon/index.htm, accessed on 13 January 2011.
