AASM The Armement Air - Sol Modulaire ( Air - to - Ground Modular Weapon ) ( AASM ) is a French Precision - Guided Munition developed by Sagem Défense Sécurité . AASM comprises a frontal guidance kit and a rear - mounted range extension kit matched to a dumb bomb . The weapon is modular because it can integrate different types of guidance units and different types of bombs . The basic version features a bomb plus hybrid inertial navigation system ( INS ) / Global Positioning System ( GPS ) guidance . Other variants add imaging infrared ( IIR ) or semi - active laser homing ( SALH ) to increase accuracy ; there are also versions with , or bomb bodies . It entered service in 2007 with the French Air Force and Naval Aviation , from Rafale and Mirage 2000 . It is also known as " HAMMER " ( Highly Agile Modular Munition Extended Range ) . Development . The program started in 1997 , when the Délégation Générale pour l ' Armement ( DGA ) , the French defense procurement agency , launched an international competition on the design for the weapon . In 2000 , a contract was awarded to SAGEM for an initial lot of AASM GPS / INS bomb kits , expected at the time to be delivered from 2004 and to enter service the following year . Validation . A test campaign to validate in flight the main performances of this AASM variant started on December 6 , 2004 and ended on July 26 , 2005 . While demonstrating excellent results , this campaign showed the need to change some of the aerodynamic features of the weapon . To compensate for delays in AASM deliveries in 2008 France ordered dual - mode ( laser - and GPS / INS - guided ) GBU - 49 Enhanced Paveway II kits for integration with Mirage 2000D and Rafale fighter - bombers . The GPS / INS + IIR guided version completed its qualification tests on July 9 , 2008 after three firings at the DGA ' s missile test range in Biscarosse . This 250 kg IR version performed a night launch from a Rafale fighter - bomber at DGA ' s Biscarosse test range in December 2010 . According to Sagem , the weapon was launched at a range of more than 50 km from the target , which was hit within one meter . A 125 kg version was successfully test fired on January 27 , 2009 , and a laser guided variant was air - launched for the first time on June 17 , 2010 . Cost . According to French Senate ' s Comité des Prix de Revient des fabrications d ' Armement ( CPRA ) cited by the daily La Tribune , the total cost of the AASM program including development costs and the delivery of 2348 kits is 846 millions euros . The per - weapon cost is $ 300 , 000 or twelve times the cost of the comparable American JDAM , although the latter has been manufactured in much larger quantities ( aprox . 250 , 000 kits ) and would be reasonable to expect a drastic reduction of the price of the French munition if larger contracts are signed and economies of scale are achieved . Variants . AASM comes in several variants according to its size and the type of guidance used . On October 2010 , these versions were given alphanumeric designations with the INS / GPS version becoming the SBU - 38 ( SBU = Smart Bomb Unit ) , the INS / GPS / IIR version becoming the SBU - 54 and the INS / GPS / SALH version becoming the SBU - 64 ; the system as a whole was renamed Hammer to make it more appealing to export customers . Operational use . The first order for AASM was placed by the DGA in 2000 for a total of 744 units ; deliveries started in 2007 after a two - year delay in development . In 2009 a second order for 680 units was placed , by the end of that year deliveries had reached 334 . Afghanistan . AASM made its combat debut on April 20 , 2008 , during the War in Afghanistan when a Rafale fighter fired two in support of ground troops . Libya . On 24 March 2011 it was reported that an AASM missile fired from a Dassault Rafale was used to destroy a Libyan Air Force G - 2 / Galeb light ground attack / trainer jet , the first Libyan warplane to challenge the no - fly zone during the 2011 Libyan civil war , on the runway just after the plane had landed at Misrata Airport . On 6 April 2011 , it was reported that a AASM missile fired from a Dassault Rafale was used to destroy a Libyan tank at a range of 55 km . In Libya , 225 AASM bombs have been fired " Also referred to as the Hammer , the AASM weapon has impressed during the campaign to date . Incorporating a precision guidance kit and propulsion system , the design will eventually be available for use with standard bombs weighing between 125kg and 1 , 000kg , although a 250kg version is the only one currently in service . Sagem cites a range capability of more than 32nm from high altitude , or 8nm from low level . Launches can also be made from an off - axis angle of up to 90° , while up to six weapons can be fired against individual targets in a single pass and with just one trigger press . " And " Libya represents the first opportunity for the French air force to employ the Thales Damocles targeting pod , although the Navy gave the system its combat debut over Afghanistan in late 2010 . "