The AGM-65 Maverick is a modern American air-to-ground or air-to-water missile. Its first prototypes appeared in the mid-1960s, and the missile was produced in 1972-1999. The AGM-65 is a solid-fuel missile with a range of up to 27 kilometers, capable of carrying a warhead weighing from 56 to 135 kg, and its total mass - depending on the version - from 208 to 302 kg.
The AGM-65 Maverick was developed to replace the AGM-12 Bullpup missiles. Hughes and Raytheon were responsible for its development. The new missile had a better range than its predecessor, was less reliable, and in later versions it also used a more effective guidance system. Several versions of this missile were created in the course of serial production. The first, produced on a large scale, was the AGM-65A model, which was still guided via a television link, and its actual effective range was very limited. In 1975, the AGM-65B version with a modified guidance system entered service. In the next version - AGM-65D - infrared guidance has already been used. In turn, in the AGM-65E missile, the weight of the warhead increased significantly (from 56 to 135 kilograms). Missiles of this type were or are used by many American aircraft, including: A-4 Skyhawk, A-6 Intruder, A-7 Corsair II, F-4 Phantom, F-15 E Strike Eagle or F / A-18 Hornet. In addition to the US armed forces, AGM-65 missiles have been or are used by Great Britain, South Korea, Germany and Sweden.
TER (short for: Triple Ejektor Rack) is a multi-lock, American-made suspended air beam from modern times. The Marvin Engineering Company plants are responsible for its design and production. The TER beam is suspended from the fixed suspension point of the plane (pylon), and the reinforcement is suspended from it. This relatively simple solution means that on one pylon of a given plane, instead of a single hanging weapon (e.g. a bomb), you can carry three such weapons. In the course of service, the manufacturer introduced an improved version of the TER boom, designated as BRU-42 (TER), which was intended primarily for US Navy aircraft. Currently, the latest version of the boom is TER-9 / A Mod, which (according to the manufacturer's data) measures 170.2 cm in length and 38 cm in width. The weight of a single beam is approx. 48 kilograms. The beam has improved reliability, better aerodynamic properties, and is also painted with paints reducing radar reflection. TER type beams (including the latest version) may or may have been used by numerous USAF, US Navy and USMC aircraft, including: F-14 A Tomcat, A-10 Thunderbolt II or F-16 C / D Fighting Falcon. This type of beams could be used to hang various bombs, such as Mark 20 or Mark 80.
LAU-3 is an American unguided rocket launcher from the post-war period. The launchers were designed to fire Mk. 4 Folding-Fin Aerial Rocket (FFAR for short) caliber 70 mm. A single launcher could hold up to 19 rockets of this type. It is worth adding that initially the FFAR missiles were designed to fight enemy aircraft (especially strategic bombers), but with time they began to be used as air-to-ground missiles. In the course of serial production, several variants of the LAU-3 launcher were created, among them: LAU-3 (basic version of the launcher) or LAU-3 C / A (a launcher adapted to firing single and salvo fire). The LAU-3 launcher (in various versions) was widely used, especially during the Vietnam War (1964 / 1965-1975), where it was mounted on such aircraft as the F-100F or F-105D. It was also very often used by Wild Weasel units, responsible for destroying North Vietnamese air surveillance radars and anti-aircraft missile launchers.
GBU-10 Paveway is a modern American laser guided aerial bomb. Its first prototypes appeared in the first half of the 1970s, and it was used by the US armed forces in 1976 and remains there to this day. GBU-10 Paveway is capable of carrying a warhead weighing up to 428 kg with a total curb weight of 1,162 kg.
The GBU-10 Paveway was developed and manufactured by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, based on the traditional Mk. 84. Modernization of the Mk. 84 consisted in adding a special head guiding the laser beam and ailerons correcting the fall of the bomb. GBU-10 requires highlighting with a laser target pointer. Two generations of these bombs appeared in the course of production. He represents the first GBU-10A / B Paveway I , the second is the GBU-10E / B and F / B Paveway II. The difference - apart from the design of the fins - is primarily that the Paveway II has a homing head that is cheaper to produce and more sensitive, which increases its accuracy and effectiveness. The main carriers of these bombs are the F-111 and F-15 E Strike Eagle planes. In addition, it can be carried by, among others: F-16 Fighting Falcon or F / A-18 Hornet. In the course of Operation Desert Storm in 1990-1991 bombs GBU-10 Paveway showed 76% effectiveness in hitting targets.
The AIM-9 Sidewinder is a modern American short-range air-to-air missile. Its first prototypes appeared in the early 1950s, and it entered the US armed forces in 1955/1956, remaining there today. The AIM-9 Sidewinder is a missile with a range of up to 35 kilometers, capable of carrying a warhead weighing 9.4 kg with a total curb weight of 91 kilograms.
The AIM-9 Sidewinder proved to be the first effective and combatable air-to-air missile in the history of the US military. Raytheon was primarily responsible for its development, but also Philco and General Electric. Many variants of this missile were created in the course of serial production. One of the most important was the AIM-9L, which was put into service in 1977. It could track the enemy plane no matter what direction it was launched towards it (from the side, from below, etc.). It also had much better guidance systems than the previous versions. The latest version is the AIM-9X, which was first tested in 1999. AIM-9X can be used in all weather conditions, day and night, it can also be launched without prior "lighting" the target. It is characterized by a very high degree of maneuverability and high resistance to jamming. In the US armed forces, AIM-9 missiles of various versions were or are carried by such aircraft and helicopters as, for example: F-4 Phantom, F-15 Eagle, F-16 C / D Fighting Falcon or AH-64 Apache. The users of the AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles were or are also many other countries, for example: Australia, Belgium, Egypt, Greece, Israel, Kuwait, Turkey and the United Kingdom. Missiles of this type were used in combat, among others during the Vietnam War (1964 / 1965-1975), the Falklands War in 1982 and during the Operation Desert Storm (1990-1991).
GBU-12 Paveway is a modern American laser guided aerial bomb. Its first prototypes appeared in the first half of the 1970s, and it was used by the US armed forces in 1976 and remains there to this day. GBU-12 is capable of carrying explosives (Tritonal and PBNX) weighing up to 87 kg with a total empty weight of 230 kg.
The GBU-12 Paveway was developed and manufactured by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, based on the traditional Mk. 82 with a weight of 227 kilograms. Modernization of the Mk. 82 consisted in adding a special head guiding the laser beam and ailerons correcting the fall of the bomb. The first element was originally developed by Texas Instruments, which later became part of Raytheon. GBU-12 requires highlighting with a laser target pointer. Two generations of these bombs appeared in the course of production. He represents the first GBU-12 Paveway I , the second is the GBU-12 Paveway II. The difference - apart from the design of the fins - is primarily that the Paveway II has a homing head that is cheaper to produce and more sensitive, which increases its accuracy and effectiveness. The main carrier of these bombs is the F-111 plane. In addition, it can be carried by, among others: F-15 Strike Eagle, A-10 Thunderbolt II, F-16 Fighting Falcon or F / A-18 Hornet. In the course of Operation Desert Storm in 1990-1991 bombs GBU-12 Paveway showed 88% effectiveness in hitting targets.
Sniper ATP (short for: Advanced Targeting Pod ) is an American-made suspended aviation container from modern times. The device entered the line in the US Air Force at the beginning of the 21st century. Its length is 252 cm with a diameter of 30.5 centimeters. In turn, the weight of the tray does not exceed 205 kilograms. The presented container was developed by the Lockheed-Martin defense company for the needs of the American Air Force (USAF). The container is responsible for identifying targets, tracking them, coordinating the acquired data with data from the GPS system, as well as for guiding the target of a stand-off weapon. It is worth noting that, compared to similar containers produced earlier, the Sniper ATP is characterized by reduced aerodynamic resistance, it is relatively smaller and lighter, and above all, it allows the detection of targets at much greater distances. Various versions of this reservoir are operated in countries such as: Belgium, the Netherlands, Japan, Canada, Poland or - of course - the United States. The container can be suspended under, among others: F-15 C Eagle, F-15 E Strike Eagle, F-16 C / D Block 50, B-1, B-52 or PANAVIA Tornado.
AN / ALQ-131 Self Protection Jammer Pod is an American electronic countermeasure (ECM), originally developed by Westinghouse Electronics. Its main task is to protect the plane carrying it against air combat systems, the detection of which is based on thermals, and against radar threats. The AN / ALQ-131 is able to jam many (probably several) devices at the same time. The first versions of this cartridge appeared in the 1970s, but the system turned out to be very susceptible to modernization and remains in service to this day. It showed its properties especially during the Desert Storm operation in 1990-1991. It turned out to be very reliable, low-fault and effective in operation. The US Air Force uses this type of container on the A-10 Thunderbolt II, F-16 Fighting Falcon, F / RF-4 Phantom II and special versions of the C-130 Hercules planes.
AN / ALQ-184 Pod is an electronic countermeasure (ECM) and electronic warfare (EW), developed and manufactured by the American concern Raytheon. The system was developed in the mid-1980s, and between 1989 and 1996, Raytheon delivered over 850 such containers to the US Air Force. The main task of AN / ALQ-184 is to detect the sources of radar waves falling on its own aircraft, as well as to disrupt enemy radars (both airborne and ground). It is estimated that the system is able to detect radar waves with nearly 100% efficiency, and its jamming capabilities are most often described as very high. The AN / ALQ-184 container is dedicated primarily to tactical aircraft, and in the USAAF it is used, for example, on the F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft.