AGM - 88 HARM The AGM - 88 High - speed Anti - Radiation Missile ( HARM ) is a tactical , air - to - surface missile designed to home in on electronic transmissions coming from surface - to - air radar systems . It was originally developed by Texas Instruments as a replacement for the AGM - 45 Shrike and AGM - 78 Standard ARM system . Production was later taken over by Raytheon Corporation when it purchased the defense production business of Texas Instruments . Description . The AGM - 88 can detect , attack and destroy a radar antenna or transmitter with minimal aircrew input . The proportional guidance system that homes in on enemy radar emissions has a fixed antenna and seeker head in the missile ' s nose . A smokeless , solid - propellant , booster - sustainer rocket motor propels the missile at speeds over Mach 2 . HARM , a Navy - led program , was initially integrated onto the A - 6E , A - 7 and F / A - 18 and later onto the EA - 6B . RDT & E for use on the F - 14 was begun , but not completed . The Air Force introduced HARM on the F - 4G Wild Weasel and later on specialized F - 16 s equipped with the HARM Targeting System ( HTS ) . History . Deployment . The HARM missile was approved for full production in March 1983 , and then deployed in late 1985 with VA - 72 and VA - 46 aboard the aircraft carrier USS " America " . It was soon used in combat — in March 1986 against a Libyan SA - 5 site in the Gulf of Sidra , and then Operation Eldorado Canyon in April . HARM was used extensively by the United States Navy and the United States Air Force for Operation Desert Storm during the Gulf War of 1991 . During the Gulf War , the HARM was involved in a friendly fire incident when the pilot of an F - 4G Wild Weasel escorting a B - 52 bomber mistook the latter ' s tail gun radar for an Iraqi AAA site . ( This was after the tail gunner of the B - 52 had targeted the F - 4G , mistaking it for an Iraqi MiG . ) The F - 4 pilot launched the missile and then saw that the target was the B - 52 , which was hit . It survived with shrapnel damage to the tail and no casualties . The B - 52 was subsequently renamed " In HARM ' s Way " . " Magnum " is spoken over the radio to announce the launch of an AGM - 88 . During the Gulf War , if an aircraft was illuminated by enemy radar a bogus " Magnum " call on the radio was often enough to convince the operators to power down . This technique would also be employed in Serbia during air operations in 1999 . In 2013 President Obama offered the AGM - 88 to Israel for the first time . AGM - 88E AARGM . The newest upgrade is a joint venture by the Italian Ministry of Defense and the US Department of Defense : the " AGM - 88E Advanced Anti - Radiation Guided Missile " ( " AARGM " ) , produced by Alliant Techsystems . In November 2005 , the Italian Ministry of Defense and the US Department of Defense signed a Memorandum of Agreement on the joint development of the AGM - 88E AARGM missile . Italy was providing $ 20 million of developmental funding as well as several millions worth material , equipment and related services . The Italian Air Force was expected to procure up to 250 missiles for its Tornado ECR aircraft . Thus flight test program was set to integrate the AARGM onto Tornado ECR ' s weapon system . The AARGM features the latest software , enhanced capabilities intended to counter radar shutdown and passive radar using an additional active millimeter wave seeker . It was released in November 2010 . The Navy demonstrated the AARGM ' s capability during Initial Operational Test and Evaluation ( IOT & E ) in spring 2012 with 12 live firing of the missiles . Aircrew and maintenance training with live missiles were completed in June . The Navy authorized Full - Rate Production ( FRP ) of the AARGM in August 2012 , with 72 missiles for the Navy and nine for the Italian Air Force to be delivered in 2013 . A U . S . Marine Corps F / A - 18 Hornet squadron will be the first forward - deployed unit with the AGM - 88E . It will be initially integrated onto the FA - 18C / D , FA - 18E / F , EA - 18G , and Tornado ECR aircraft and later on the F - 35 . In September 2013 , ATK delivered the 100th AARGM to the U . S . Navy . The AGM - 88E program is on schedule and on budget , with Full Operational Capability ( FOC ) planned for September 2014 .