Boeing Harpoon Totally Explained

Everything about Agm-84 Harpoon totally explained

The Harpoon is an all-weather, over-the-horizon, anti-ship missile system, developed and manufactured by the McDonnell Douglas Corporation of the United States of America, with manufacturing now taken over by Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, the new owner of its factory in Missouri. In 2004, Boeing delivered the 7,000th Harpoon unit since the weapon's introduction in 1977. The missile system has also been further developed into a land-strike weapon, the Standoff Land Attack Missile (SLAM).
The regular Harpoon uses active radar homing, and a low-level, sea-skimming cruise trajectory to improve survivability and lethality. The missile's launch platforms include:

Fixed-wing aircraft (the AGM-84, made without the solid-fueled booster)

Surface ships (the RGM-84, fitted with a solid-fueled rocket booster that detaches when expended, to allow the missile's main turbojet to maintain flight)

Submarines (the UGM-84, fitted with a solid-rocket launch booster and encapsulated in a container to enable submerged launch through a torpedo tube);

Coastal defense batteries, from which it would be fired with a solid-fueled booster. The missiles somewhat comparable to the Harpoon are the French-made Exocet, the Swedish RBS-15, the Russian SS-N-25 Switchblade, the British Sea Eagle and the Chinese Yingji.

The Original Harpoon

The Harpoon was first introduced in 1977 after the sinking of the Israeli destroyer Eilat in 1967 by a Soviet-built Styx anti-ship missiles from an Egyptian missile boat.
   Initially developed as an air-launched missile for the United States Navy P-3 Orion patrol planes, the Harpoon has been adapted for use on Air Force B-52H bombers, which can carry from eight to 12 of the missiles.
   The following discussion of user countries and weapons platforms is quite incomplete.
   The Harpoon has been procured by many U.S. Allies, especially by the NATO countries, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, U.K. etc.
   The Harpoon has also been adapted for use on the F-16 Fighting Falcon, in use by the USA, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates. It has been carried by several US Navy aircraft, including the P-3, the A-6 Intruder, the S-3 Viking, and the F/A-18 Hornet.
   The Royal Australian Air Force can fire AGM-84 series missiles from its F-111C/G Aardvarks, F/A-18 Hornets, and P-3C Orion aircraft. The Royal Australian Navy deploys the Harpoon on major surface combatants and in the Collins class submarines. The Spanish Air Force and the Chilean Navy are another AGM-84D customer and can fire the missiles from F/A-18, F-16, surface ships, and the P-3 Orion aircraft. The British Royal Navy deploys the Harpoon on several types of surface ship and submarine, and the Royal Air Force uses it on the Nimrod MR2 maritime patrol aircraft.
   The Canadian Forces Maritime Command (Canadian Navy) uses Harpoons on its Halifax-Class Patrol frigates. The Royal New Zealand Air Force has the capability of carrying the Harpoon on its five P-3 patrol planes as its only source of maratime striking power against surface ships.
   The Republic of Singapore Air Force also operates 5 modified Fokker-50 Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) which are fitted with sonars and sensors to fire the Harpoon missile. The Pakistani Navy uses the Harpoon on its naval frigates and P-3C Orions. The Turkish Navy uses Harpoons on surface combatants and Type-209 submarines. The Turkish Air Force will operate the SLAM-ER.
   57 Harpoons were reportedly sold to the Republic of China Air Force (Taiwan). The Taiwanese navy also includes four guided-missile destroyers and several guided-missile frigates with the capability of carrying the Harpoon. This isn't surprising, since these are either former USN destroyers or identical to U.S.N. frigates - the Oliver Hazard Perry-class.

Harpoon Block ID

This version featured a larger fuel tank and reattack capability, but wasn't produced in numbers because its intended mission (confrontation with the Soviet Union) was, after 1991, considered unlikely.

Harpoon Block IE

The Block IE version uses an optical seeker head borrowed from the AGM-62 Walleye, a GPS receiver and the data link from the AGM-65 Maverick missile. It is an intermediate range, all-weather weapon which can attack ships in port, which are close together, or a land target. The reuse of electronics and sensors already in service in other weapons reduced its development cost.
It's operational designation is the AGM-84F.

SLAM ATA (Block IG)

This version, under development, gives the SLAM a reattack capability as well as an image comparison capability similar to the Tomahawk cruise missile; that is, the weapon can compare the target scene in front of it with an image stored in its on-board computer during terminal phase target acquisition and lockon.

Harpoon Block II

In production at Boeing facilities in Saint Charles, Missouri is the Harpoon Block II, intended to offer an expanded engagement envelope and advanced counter measures together with improved targeting. Specifically, the Harpoon was initially designed as an open-ocean weapon; Block II continues progress begun with Block IE, and provides the Harpoon with a littoral water attack capability.
The key improvements of the Harpoon Block II are obtained by incorporating the inertial measurement unit from the Joint Direct Attack Munition program, and the software, computer, Global Positioning System (GPS)/inertial navigation system and GPS antenna/receiver from the SLAM Expanded Response (SLAM-ER), an upgrade to the SLAM.
The first international customer for Harpoon Block II systems was the Royal Danish Navy, which ordered 50 upgrade kits in 1997; the first systems were delivered in 2002.

Harpoon Block III

With the addition of a robust datalink system, Harpoon Block III provides inflight target updates, positive terminal control and connectivity with future network architecture, resulting in more control after the weapon is released. The datalink already provides autonomous, all-weather, over-the-horizon capability.
The Harpoon Block III Weapon System provides the U.S. Navy and its allies with Surface Warfare (SuW) capabilities from ships and aircraft. Harpoon Block III creates a highly capable weapon for the open water and littoral warfare environment, adding Global Positioning System capability, littoral performance improvement and a precision moving target solution.
The 500-pound blast warhead delivers lethal firepower for conventional anti-ship missions, such as open-ocean, near-land, or ships in port. The datalink updated Global Positioning System/Inertial Navigation System improves mid-course guidance to the target area. The accurate navigation solution allows users to discriminate target ships from islands, other nearby land masses, obstructions, or ships. Harpoon Block III will be deployable from Harpoon missile system platforms with existing command and launch equipment, the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, and the Multi-Mission Maritime Aircraft (MMA) like P-3 Orion.

Operational history

In 1981 and 1982 there were two accidental launches of Harpoon missiles from US and Danish surface ships.
   In 1986, the United States Navy sank at least two Libyan patrol boats in the Gulf of Sidra. Two Harpoon missiles were launched from the with no confirmed results and several others from A-6 Intruder aircraft that were said to have hit their targets. Initial reports claimed that the USS Yorktown scored hits on a patrol boat, but action reports indicated that the target may have been a false one and that no ships were hit by those missiles.
   In 1988, Harpoon missiles were used to sink the Iranian frigate Sahand during Operation Praying Mantis. Another was fired at the Combattante II class missile boat Joshan, but failed to strike because the FAC had already been mostly sunk by RIM-66 Standard missiles. An Iranian Harpoon was also fired at the destroyer . The missile passed along the side of the warship but apparently it failed to detect and engage the ship.
   In December 1988, a Harpoon launched by an F/A-18 Hornet airplane from the aircraft carrier killed one sailor when it struck the Jagvivek, a 250 ft long Indian merchant ship, during an exercise at the Pacific Missile Range near Kauai, Hawaii. A Notice to Mariners had been issued warning of the danger, but when the Jagvivek strayed into the test range, the unarmed Harpoon, loaded with an inert warhead, locked onto it instead of its intended target.

General characteristics

Primary function: Air-, surface-, or submarine-launched anti-surface (anti-ship) missile

Contractor: The McDonnell Douglas Astronautic Corpany - East

Power plant: Teledyne Teledyne J402 turbojet, 660 lb-force (2.9 kN) thrust, and a solid-propellant booster for surface and submarine launches

Length:

Air launched: 3.8 m (12 ft 7 in)
Surface and submarine launched: 4.6 m (15 ft)

Weight:

Air launched: 519 kg (1,160 lb)
Submarine or ship launched from box or canister launcher: 628 kg (1,523 lb)

Diameter: 340 mm (13.5 in)

Wing span: 910 mm (3 ft) with booster fins and wings

Range: Over-the-horizon (approx 50 nautical miles)

AGM-84D - 220 km (120 nm)
RGM/UGM-84D - 140 km (75 nm)
AGM-84E - 93 km (50 nm)
AGM-84F - 315 km (170 nm)
AGM-84H/K- 280 km (150 nm)

Speed: High subsonic, around 850 km/h (460 knots, 240 m/s, or 530 mph)

Guidance: Sea-skimming cruise monitored by radar altimeter, active radar terminal homing

Warhead: 221 kg (488 lb), penetration high-explosive blast

Unit cost: US$720,000

Date deployed:

Ship launched (RGM-84A): 1977
Air launched (AGM-84A): 1979
Submarine launched (UGM-84A): 1981
SLAM (AGM-84E): 1990
SLAM-ER (AGM-84H): 1998 (delivery); 2000 (initial operational capability (IOC))
SLAM-ER ATA (AGM-84K): 2002 (IOC)

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