AGM-123 Skipper II | |
---|---|
Type | Rocket assisted, low-level, laser-guided bomb |
Place of origin | United States |
Service history | |
In service | 1985-1990s [1] |
Used by | United States Navy, United States Marine Corps |
Production history | |
Manufacturer | Emerson Electric |
Specifications | |
Mass | 582 kg (1,283 lb) |
Length | 4.3 m (14 ft 1.2 in) |
Diameter | 0.5 m (1 ft 7.6 in) |
Wingspan | 1.6 m (5 ft 3 in) |
Warhead | 1000 lb (450 kg) Mk 83 bomb |
Detonation mechanism | Impact-fuse |
Engine | Aerojet Mk 78 dual-thrust solid-fueled rocket |
Operational range | 25 km (15.5 statute miles) |
Maximum speed | 1,100 km/h (680 mph) |
Guidance system | laser-guidance |
AGM-123 Skipper II is a short-range laser-guided missile developed by the United States Navy. The Skipper was intended as an anti-ship weapon, capable of disabling the largest vessels with a 1,000-lb (450-kg) impact-fuzed warhead.
The AGM-123 is composed out of a 1,000 lb (454 kg) Mark 83 low-drag general purpose bomb fitted with a Paveway guidance kit and one Aerojet Mk 78 solid-propellant rocket that fires upon launch. The rocket allows the AGM-123 to be dropped farther away from the target than could free-fall bombs, which helps protect the delivery aircraft from surface-to-air-missiles and anti-aircraft artillery near the target.
The AGM-123 was developed at the China Lake Naval Weapons Center and was carried by the A-6E Intruder, A-7 Corsair II, and F/A-18.
Four Skipper missiles launched by A-6E Intruders contributed to sinking the Iranian frigate Sahand during Operation Praying Mantis on April 18, 1988. [2]
Skipper missiles were also fired in Operation Desert Storm against Iraqi surface vessels by A-6s and U.S. Marine aircraft. [2]
The AGM-65 Maverick is an air-to-ground missile (AGM) designed for close air support. It is the most widely produced precision-guided missile in the Western world, and is effective against a wide range of tactical targets, including armor, air defenses, ships, ground transportation and fuel storage facilities.
The AGM-114 Hellfire is an American air-to-surface missile (ASM) first developed for anti-armor use, later developed for precision drone strikes against other target types, especially high-value targets. It was originally developed under the name "Heliborne laser, fire-and-forget missile", which led to the colloquial name "Hellfire" ultimately becoming the missile's formal name. It has a multi-mission, multi-target precision-strike ability and can be launched from multiple air, sea, and ground platforms, including the MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper. The Hellfire missile is the primary 100-pound (45 kg) class air-to-ground precision weapon for the armed forces of the United States and many other nations. It has also been fielded on surface platforms in the surface-to-surface and surface-to-air roles.
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The Popeye is a family of air-to-surface missiles developed and in use by Israel, of which several types have been developed for Israeli and export users. A long-range submarine-launched cruise missile variant of the Popeye Turbo has been speculated as being employed in Israel's submarine-based nuclear forces. The United States operated the Popeye under a different designation according to US naming conventions as the AGM-142 Have Nap.
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Iranian frigate Sahand was a British-made Vosper Mark V class frigate commissioned as part of a four-ship order. The ship was originally called Faramarz, named after a character in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh. After the 1979 Islamic Revolution it was renamed Sahand, after the Sahand volcano.
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