AGM-114 Hellfire

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

AGM-114 Hellfire
Hellfire AGM-114A
Type Air-To-Ground Missile
Nationality United States
Era Cold War
Launch platform Helicopter, Unmanned aerial vehicle
Target armored vehicles
History
Builder Lockheed Martin
Date of design  
Production period  
Service duration  
Operators See main text
Variants See main text
Number built  
Specifications
Type  
Diameter 17.8 cm (7 in)
Wing span 33 cm (13 in)
Length 163 cm (64 in)
Weight 45 kg (99 lb)
Propulsion Solid fuel rocket
Steering  
Guidance Semi-active laser homing
Speed 1530 km/h (950 mph)
Range 500–8,000 m (550 yd–5 mi)
Ceiling  
Payload
Warhead 8 kg (18 lb) HEAT
Trigger Impact

AGM-114 Hellfire (Helicopter launched fire-and-forget) is a U.S. missile system.

Contents

[edit] Overview

Hellfire was initially designed to be primarily used as a "tank-buster", launched from helicopters to defeat armored vehicles. It has since matured to be a comprehensive weapon system which can be deployed from rotary wing aircraft, fixed wing aircraft, naval assets and land based systems against a variety of targets.

Despite the expanded acronym, most versions of the Hellfire missile are not truly "fire-and-forget"—all the laser-guided versions require constant illumination or "painting" of the target from launch to impact. The AGM-114L is a true fire-and-forget weapon: it requires no further guidance after launch and can hit its target without the launcher being in line of sight of the target.

The Hellfire (along with the Maverick) was to be replaced by the Joint Common Missile (JCM) around 2011. The JCM was developed with a tri-mode seeker and a multi-purpose warhead that would combine the capabilities of the several Hellfire variants. In the budget for FY2006, the US Department of Defense canceled a number of projects that they felt no longer warranted continuation based on their cost effectiveness, including the JCM. Due to the U.S. military's continuing need for a proven precision-strike aviation weapon in the interim until a successor to the JCM is fielded, as well as extensive foreign sales, it is likely the Hellfire will be in service for many years.

[edit] Combat history

Hellfire missiles were successfully used by U.S. Army troops against seven targets during Operation Just Cause in Panama in 1990. Hellfire was used in the opening strikes of Operation Desert Storm on January 17, 1991, when eight AH-64 Apache helicopters used Hellfire missiles as well as Hydra 70 rockets to destroy two Iraqi early warning ground-control radar sites. In early 2002, RQ-1 Predator UAVs were armed with Hellfires and used in combat.

The Hellfire missile has been used extensively in the 2003 invasion of Iraq and ongoing operations in Iraq.

As of January 14, 2006 the CIA reportedly used 10 Hellfire missiles from unmanned MQ-1 Predator combat air vehicles to strike at Ayman al-Zawahiri, Al-Qaeda second in command with many aliases. It later turned out that that the target was not present at the time. See the airstrike on Damadola for more information.

Israel also uses them for assassination operations, euphemistically dubbed "targeted killings", including the founder and spiritual leader of Hamas: Sheikh Ahmed Ismail Yassin. Ahmed Yassin was killed in an Israeli attack on March 22, 2004. While he was being wheeled out of an early morning prayer session, an Israeli helicopter gunship fired Hellfire missiles at Yassin and both of his bodyguards. They were killed instantly, along with eight civilians. In order to minimise casualties, Israel purportedly removed the explosive warhead, while replacing this weight with ballast to keep the weapon stable in flight[citation needed]. Israel claims the weapon allows for accurate attacks that reduce casualties among innocent civilians, though this has been disputed.[citation needed].

[edit] Launch vehicles and systems

Component model
Component model
Hellfire loaded onto the rails of a United States Marine Corps AH-1W Super Cobra at Balad Air Base in Iraq in 2005.
Hellfire loaded onto the rails of a United States Marine Corps AH-1W Super Cobra at Balad Air Base in Iraq in 2005.

The system has been tested for use on the High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV) and the Improved TOW Vehicle (ITV). Test shots have also been fired from a C-130 Hercules (see photos below). Sweden and Norway use the Hellfire for coastal defense, and Norway has conducted tests with Hellfire launchers and aiming stations mounted on the Stridsbåt 90 coastal assault boat[1].

[edit] Users

[edit] Specifications

[edit] Variants

[edit] AGM-114A Basic Hellfire

[edit] AGM-114B/C Basic Hellfire

  • M120E1 low smoke motor.
  • AGM-114B has electronic SAD (Safe/Arming Device) for safe shipboard use.
  • Unit cost: $25,000

[edit] AGM-114D/E Basic Hellfire

  • Proposed upgrade of AGM-114B/C with digital autopilot—not built.

[edit] AGM-114F Interim Hellfire

  • Target: Tanks, armored vehicles.
  • Range: 7,000 m (7,650 yd)
  • Guidance: Semi-active laser homing.
  • Warhead: 9 kg (20 lb) tandem shaped charge HEAT.
  • Length: 180 cm (71 in)
  • Weight: 48.5 kg (107 lb)

[edit] AGM-114G Interim Hellfire

  • Proposed version of AGM-114F with SAD—not built.

[edit] AGM-114H Interim Hellfire

  • Proposed upgrade of AGM-114F with digital autopilot—not built.

[edit] AGM-114J Hellfire II

  • Proposed version of AGM-114F with lighter components, shorter airframe, and increased range—not built.

[edit] AGM-114K Hellfire II

A Hellfire II cross-sectioned.
A Hellfire II cross-sectioned.
  • Target: Tanks, armored vehicles.
  • Range: 9,000 m (9,850 yd)
  • Guidance:
    • Semi-active laser homing.
    • Digital autopilot.
    • Electro-optical countermeasures hardening.
    • Target reacquisition after lost laser lock.
  • New electronic SAD.
  • Warhead: 9 kg (20 lb) tandem shaped charge HEAT.
  • Length: 163 cm (64 in)
  • Weight: 45 kg (99 lb)
  • Unit cost: $65,000
  • Essentially the proposed AGM-114J w/ SAD

[edit] AGM-114L Longbow Hellfire

  • Target: Tanks, armored vehicles.
  • Range: 9,000 m (9,850 yd)
  • Guidance:
    • Fire and forget.
    • Inertial guidance.
    • Millimeter wave radar seeker.
    • Home-on-jam anti-radiation mode.
  • Warhead: 9 kg (20 lb) tandem shaped charge HEAT.
  • Length: 176 cm (69.2 in)
  • Weight: 49 kg (108 lb)

[edit] AGM-114M Hellfire II

  • Target: Ships, caves, urban targets, air defense units.
  • Guidance:
    • Semi-active laser homing.
  • Warhead: Blast fragmentation/incendiary.
  • Weight: 48 kg (105 lb)

[edit] AGM-114N Hellfire II

  • Target: Buildings, bunkers, caves, personnel.
  • Warhead: Metal Augmented Charge thermobaric overpressure.

[edit] AGM-114P Hellfire II

  • Version of AGM-114K optimized for use from UAVs flying at high-altitude.

[edit] Rocket motor

Cross section diagram of Hellfire rocket motor, showing the rod and tube grain design (click to enlarge).
Cross section diagram of Hellfire rocket motor, showing the rod and tube grain design (click to enlarge).
  • Contractor: Alliant Techsystems
  • Designation:
    • M120E3 (Army)
    • M120E4 (Navy)
  • Main features:
    • Qualified minimum smoke propellant
    • Rod and tube grain design
    • Neoprene bondline system
  • Performance:
    • Operating temperature: −43 °C to 63 °C (−45 °F to 145 °F)
    • Storage temperature: −43 °C to 71 °C (−45 °F to 160 °F
    • Service life: 20+ years (estimated)
  • Technical data:
    • Weight: 14.2 kg (31.3 lb)
    • Length: 59.3 cm (23.35 in)
    • Diameter: 18 cm (7.0 in)
    • Case: 7075-T73 aluminum
    • Insulator: R-181 aramid fiber-filled EPDM
    • Nozzle: Cellulose phenolic
    • Propellant: Minimum smoke cross linked double based (XLDB)

[edit] Photos

HMMWV

Tank strike

C-130 test

C-130 test

AH-64


[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Norwegian article about the experimental deployment of Hellfire missiles on coastal patrol boats (from the official web site of the Norwegian Armed Forces)

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Lockheed Martin
v • d • e
Companies and Partnerships

International Launch Services · LM Aeronautics · LM Information Technology · LM Maritime Systems and Sensors · LM Missiles and Fire Control · LM Orincon · LM Simulation, Training & Support · LM Space Systems · LM Systems Integration - Owego · LM Transportation & Security Solutions · LM UK · Savi Technology · United Space Alliance · United Launch Alliance

v • d • e
Facilities

Goodyear Airdock · Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory · LM Space Applications Laboratory · Michoud Assembly Facility · Sandia National Laboratories · Skunk Works

v • d • e
Active Products

Aegis · AeroText · Asroc · ATACMS · Atlas V rocket · C-5 · C-130 · Space Shuttle External Fuel Tank · Force Hawk · F-16 · F-22 · F-35 · F-117 Nighthawk · JASSM · Javelin · JCM · Hellfire · HIMARS · MEADS · Milstar · MLRS · MUOS · Nimiq · Orion spacecraft (under development) · P-3 · Predator missile · SBIRS · THAAD · Sniper XR · T-50 · Trident missile · VH-71/US101 · U-2

v • d • e
Statistics

Annual Revenue: $37.2 billion USD (FY2005) · Employees: 135,000 · Stock Symbol: NYSE: LMT · CEO: Robert J. Stevens · Website: www.lockheedmartin.com

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../a/g/m/AGM-114_Hellfire_7674.html"