Exocet The Exocet ( French for " flying fish " ) is a French - built anti - ship missile whose various versions can be launched from surface vessels , submarines , helicopters and fixed - wing aircraft . Etymology . The missile ' s name was given by M . Guillot , then the technical director at Nord Aviation . It is the French word for flying fish from the Latin name " exocoetus " , a transliteration of the Greek name for flying fish ( " exōkoitos " ) , which literally means " lying down outside ( ἒξω , κεῖμαι ) , sleeping outside " , because it sometimes stranded itself in boats . Description . The Exocet is built by MBDA , a European missile company . Development began in 1967 by Nord as a ship - launched weapon named the MM 38 . A few years later Aerospatiale and Nord merged . The basic body design was based on the Nord AS30 air to ground tactical missile . The air - launched Exocet was developed in 1974 and entered service with the French Navy five years later . The relatively compact missile is designed for attacking small - to medium - size warship s ( e . g . , frigates , corvettes and destroyers ) , although multiple hits are effective against larger vessels , such as aircraft carriers . It is guided inertially in mid - flight and turns on active radar late in its flight to find and hit its target . As a counter - measure against the air defence around the target , it maintains a very low altitude during ingress , staying 1 – 2 m above the sea surface . Due to the effect of the radar horizon , this means that the target may not detect an incoming attack until the missile is only 6 , 000 m from impact . This leaves little time for reaction and stimulated the design of close - in weapon system s ( CIWS ) . Its rocket motor , which is fuelled by solid propellant , gives the Exocet a maximum range of . It was replaced on the Block 3 MM40 ship - launched version of the missile with a solid - propellant booster and a turbojet sustainer motor which extends the range of the missile to more than . The submarine - launched version places the missile inside a launch capsule . Versions . The Exocet has been manufactured in a number of versions , including : MM40 Block 3 . In February 2004 , the Délégation Générale pour l ' Armement ( DGA ) notified MBDA of a contract for the design and production of a new missile , the MM40 Block 3 . It has an improved range - in excess of through the use of a turbojet engine , and includes four air intakes to provide a continuous airflow to the power plant during high - G manoeuvers . The Block 3 missile accepts GPS guidance system waypoint commands , which allow it to attack naval targets from different angles and to strike land targets , giving it a marginal role as a land - attack missile . The Block 3 Exocet is lighter than the previous MM40 Block 2 Exocet . Forty - five Block 3 Exocets were ordered by the French Navy in December 2008 for its ships which were carrying Block 2 missiles , namely " Horizon " - class and " Aquitaine " - class frigates . These are not to be new productions but the conversion of older Block 2 missiles to the Block 3 standard . A MM40 Block 3 last qualification firing took place on the l ’ Ile du Levant test range on 25 April 2007 and series manufacturing began in October 2008 . The first firing of the Block 3 from a warship took place on 18 March 2010 , from the French Navy air defense frigate " Chevalier Paul " . In 2012 , a new motor designed and manufactured in Brazil by the Avibras company , in collaboration with MBDA , was tested on a MM40 missile of the Brazilian Navy . Beside the French , the Block 3 has been ordered by several other navies including that of Greece , the UAE , Peru , Qatar , Oman , Indonesia and Morocco . The chief competitors to the Exocet are the US - made Harpoon , the Swedish RBS - 15 and the Chinese Yingji series . History . Falklands War . In 1982 , during the Falklands War , the Exocet became noted worldwide when Argentine Navy Dassault - Breguet Super Étendard warplanes carrying the AM39 Air Launched version of the Exocet caused irreparable damage which sank the Royal Navy destroyer on 4 May 1982 . Two Exocets then struck the 15 , 000 ton merchant ship " Atlantic Conveyor " on 25 May . Two MM38 ship - to - ship Exocet missiles were removed from the old destroyer ARA " Seguí " , a retired US Navy " Allen M . Sumner " - class vessel and transferred to an improvised launcher for land use , a technically challenging task which also requiring reprogramming . One of these was fired at , and caused damage to , the destroyer on 12 June . The Exocet that struck the " Sheffield " impacted on the starboard side at deck level 2 , travelling through the junior ratings scullery and breaching the Forward Auxiliary Machinery Room / Forward Engine Room bulkhead above the waterline , creating a hole in the hull roughly . It appears that the warhead did not explode . Accounts suggest that the initial impact of the missile disabled the ship ' s electrical distribution systems and breached the pressurised sea water fire main , severely hampering any firefighting response and eventually dooming the ship to be consumed by the fire . The loss of " Sheffield " was a deep shock to the British public and government . Some of the crew of " Sheffield " were of the opinion that the missile exploded , others held the view that it had not . The official Royal Navy Board of Enquiry Report , however , stated that evidence indicates that the warhead did not detonate . During the four and a half days that the ship remained afloat , five salvage inspections were made and a number of photographs were taken . Members of the crew were interviewed , and testimony was given by Exocet specialists ( the Royal Navy had 15 surface combat ships armed with Exocets in the Falklands War ) . There was no evidence of an explosion , although burning propellant from the rocket motor had caused a number of fires , which could not be checked as a fire main had been put out of action . The " Atlantic Conveyor " was a container ship that had been hastily converted to an aircraft transport and was carrying helicopters and supplies . The missiles had been fired at a frigate but had been confused by the frigate ' s defences and instead targeted the " Atlantic Conveyor " nearby . The Exocets - it is not certain whether the warheads exploded or not - caused a fire in the fuel and ammunition aboard which burnt the ship out . " Atlantic Conveyor " sank while under tow three days later . The Exocet that struck " Glamorgan " detonated , ( a number of crew members witnessed this , as did the Argentines who fired it , the whole event being recorded by a film crew ) , on the port side of the hangar deck , punching a hole in the deck and galley below , causing fires . The missile body traveled into the hangar and caused a fully fueled and armed Wessex helicopter to explode . Prompt action by the officers and men at the helm saved the ship . With less than a minute ' s warning the incoming missile had been tracked on radar in the operations room and bridge ; as the ship was traveling at speed , a turn was ordered to present her stern to the missile . The ship was heeled far over to starboard when the missile struck . It hit the coaming and was deflected upwards . The dent caused by the impact was clearly visible when " Glamorgan " was refitted in late 1982 . In the years after the Falklands War , it was revealed that the British government and the Secret Intelligence Service had been extremely concerned at the time by the perceived inadequacy of the Royal Navy ' s anti - missile defences against the Exocet and its potential to tip the naval war decisively in favour of the Argentine forces . A scenario was envisioned in which one or both of the force ' s two aircraft carriers ( and ) were destroyed or incapacitated by Exocet attacks , ( which would make recapturing the Falklands much more difficult ) . Actions were taken to contain the Exocet threat . During the preparation for the war , Britain benefited from the help of France , which gave the Exocet ' s code and homing radar . A major intelligence operation was also initiated to prevent the Argentine Navy from acquiring more of the weapons on the international market . The operation included British intelligence agents claiming to be arms dealers able to supply large numbers of Exocets to Argentina , who diverted Argentina from pursuing sources which could genuinely supply a few missiles . France denied deliveries of Exocet AM39s purchased by Peru to avoid the possibility of Peru giving them to Argentina , because they knew that payment would be made with a Credit card from the Central Bank of Peru . British intelligence had detected the guarantee was a deposit of two hundred million dollars from the Andean Lima Bank , an owned subsidiary of the Banco Ambrosiano . Lokata Company . In about 1983 , the Lokata Company ( a maker of boat navigation equipment ) , independently duplicated part of the Exocet ' s navigation system ; it caused official complications . Iran - Iraq War . During the Iran - Iraq War , on 17 May 1987 , an Iraqi jet aircraft fired Exocet missiles at the American frigate . Thirty - seven United States Navy personnel were killed and twenty - one others were wounded .