FGM-148 Javelin

The FGM-148 Javelin, or Advanced Anti-Tank Weapon System-Medium (AAWS-M), is an American-made man-portable anti-tank system in service since 1996, and continuously upgraded. It replaced the M47 Dragon anti-tank missile in US service. Its fire-and-forget design features automatic infrared guidance, allowing the user to seek cover immediately after launch, in contrast to wire-guided systems, like the system used by the Dragon, which require a user to guide the weapon throughout the engagement. The Javelin's high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) warhead can defeat modern tanks by top-down attack, hitting them from above, where their armor is thinnest, and is also useful against fortifications in a direct attack flight.

For the British surface-to-air missile, see Javelin (surface-to-air missile).

FGM-148 Javelin
An assembled FGM-148 Javelin launcher
TypeAnti-tank missile
Place of originUnited States
Service history
In service1996–present
Used bySee Operators
Wars
  • War in Afghanistan
  • Iraq War
  • Syrian Civil War
  • Second Libyan Civil War
  • Russo-Ukrainian War
Production history
DesignerTexas Instruments & Martin Marietta, now Raytheon Technologies & Lockheed Martin
DesignedJune 1989
ManufacturerRaytheon & Lockheed Martin
Unit costUS$216,717 (G-model missile only, FY2021)
US$240,000 (missile only, export cost, FY2019)
US$249,700 (Lightweight CLU only, FY2021)
Produced1996–present
No. built45,000 missiles (12,000 CLUs)
VariantsSee: § Variants
Specifications
Mass
  • 22.3 kg (49 lb), ready to fire
  • 6.4 kg (14 lb), detachable CLU
  • 15.9 kg (35 lb), missile in launch tube
Length1.1 m (43 in) (missile)
Barrel length1.2 m (47 in)
Diameter127 mm (5.0 in)
Crew1 or 2
Calibre127 mm (5.0 in)
Effective firing range
  • Original CLU: 2,500 m (1.6 mi)
  • Lightweight CLU: 4,000 m (2.5 mi)
  • From vehicle: 4,750 m (2.95 mi)
SightsOptical sight & thermal imaging
WarheadTandem-charge HEAT
Warhead weight8.4 kg (19 lb)
Detonation
mechanism
Contact fuze
Blast yield
  • Penetration:
  • Stated as being in excess of
  • 30 in (760 mm)  RHA
PropellantSolid-fuel
Flight ceiling150 m (490 ft) (top attack mode)
60 m (200 ft) (direct attack mode)
Guidance
system
Infrared homing
Launch
platform
Man-portable launcher

As of 2019, according to claims by the manufacturer, the Javelin had been used in around 5,000 successful engagements.

The weapon made its combat debut in Iraq in 2003 and rose to prominence in the Russo-Ukrainian War, where it has seen extensive use in destroying Russian armored vehicles.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.