AGM-179 JAGM

The Joint Air-to-Ground Missile (JAGM) program is a follow-on from the unsuccessful AGM-169 Joint Common Missile program that was cancelled due to budget cuts. JAGM will share basically the same objectives and technologies as JCM but will be developed over a longer time scale.[6]

In June 2007 the US Defense Department released a draft request for proposals (RFP) launching a competition for the Joint Air to Ground Missile (JAGM) program.[6] In 2008, Raytheon and Boeing teamed up on a $125 million contract,[7][8] and Lockheed Martin received a $122 million technology development contract for the Joint Air-to-Ground Missile (JAGM) system. The 27-month contracts from the U.S. Army's Aviation and Missile Command is for a competitive risk-reduction phase.[9]

Each team submitted its proposal in the spring of 2011, with contract award expected in the first quarter of 2012. However, in September the Army and Navy requested the JAGM program be terminated.[10] JAGM survived a budget reduction in 2012 with reduced funding.[11]

In 2012, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon received contracts from the U.S. Army to extend the JAGM technology development program including the design, test, and demonstration phases for the JAGM guidance section.[12][13][14] In 2013, the Army announced it would not award Raytheon a contract for the remainder of the Technology Development (TD) phase and will continue with Lockheed's contract.[15] In February 2012, the Navy and Marine Corps terminated their investment in the program, saying it was a "manageable risk" to do so and that they would instead focus on the GBU-53/B StormBreaker and continued Hellfire procurement, making the JAGM an Army-only program. In March 2014, they re-entered the program, with documents showing integration of the missile onto Marine AH-1Z helicopters.[16]

In 2015, the Army issued an RFP for a JAGM guidance section upgrade. Lockheed Martin was to offer its dual-mode laser and millimeter wave radar seeker, and Raytheon may submit its tri-mode seeker which adds imaging infrared if it chooses to compete.[17] Lockheed Martin was awarded a $66 million engineering and manufacturing contract to combine its laser and millimeter wave seekers into the Hellfire Romeo missile body. Raytheon chose not to compete but retains its tri-mode seeker should the Army request it.[18]

The designation AGM-179 was assigned to the JAGM program.[19] A Low-Rate Initial Production (LRIP) contract for JAGM was approved in 2018.[20] The AGM-179A achieved Initial Operational Capability (IOC) with USMC AH-1Z helicopters in early 2022, clearing the weapon for operational deployment.[1]

On 30 August 2022, the JAGM was declared ready for full-rate production. 1,000 missiles had been produced by February 2022, manufacturing at the minimum sustainment rate under low-rate production. Improvements to the JAGM are being developed, such as a medium-range variant with a range of 16 km (10 mi) without changing the missile's dimensions.[21]

On 16 November 2022, Lockheed Martin flight tested the JAGM-Medium Range, or JAGM-MR, which traveled 16 km. The version also incorporates a tri-mode seeker adding an imaging sensor, which was originally a requirement for the missile but was dropped due to cost factors; it was added back in the JAGM-MR as seeker technology became more affordable. Lockheed claims the upgraded capability can be provided at a cost close to the baseline JAGM.[22]

• AH-64 Apache
• MQ-1C Gray Eagle[4]
• MH-60R/S Seahawk
• MH-60 Black Hawk Direct Action Penetrator (DAP)
• AH-1Z Viper[23]
• OH-58F Kiowa
• AH-6 Little Bird
• MQ-9 Reaper
• Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II
• Mk 41 Vertical Launching System (through the exls host or with the 3 cell exls)

 United Kingdom: Selected by UK to equip its AH-64E Apache helicopters.[24] Britain purchased 3,000 AGM-179A Joint Air-to-Ground Missiles for $957.4 million in October 2023. [25]

 United States: The JAGM was intended for joint service with the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, and the U.S. Marine Corps by providing a single missile configuration for many platforms. JAGM offered the services increased operational flexibility and reduced logistics support costs.[4]

 Netherlands: Selected by the Netherlands to equip its AH-64E Apache helicopters.[26]

 Poland: Selected by Poland as part of the AH-64E Apache procurement.[27]

• Naval Air Systems Command
• List of missiles by country
• Brimstone missile
• Spike (missile)
• Precision Attack Air-to-Surface Missile

• Army RDT&E 2009 Budget Item Justification (PDF) Archived 2012-10-02 at the Wayback Machine
• Army RDT&E 2010 Budget Item Justification (PDF) Archived 2016-12-23 at the Wayback Machine
• U.S. Navy NAVAIR JAGM page
• Lockheed Martin JAGM page
• Raytheon JAGM page
• 2012 Army Weapon Systems Handbook - JAGM
• HELLFIRE II Missile