AGM - 65 Maverick The AGM - 65 Maverick is an air - to - ground tactical missile ( AGM ) designed for close air support . The most widely produced precision - guided missile in the Western world , it is effective against a wide range of tactical targets , including armor , air defenses , ships , ground transportation and fuel storage facilities . Originally designed and built by Hughes Missile Systems , development of the AGM - 65 spanned from 1966 to 1972 , after which it entered service with the United States Air Force in August 1972 . Since then , it has been exported to more than 30 countries and is certified on 25 aircraft . The Maverick served during the Vietnam , Yom Kippur , Iran – Iraq and Gulf War s , along with other smaller conflicts , destroying enemy forces and installations with varying degrees of success . Since its introduction into service , numerous Maverick versions had been designed and produced , using electro - optical , laser , charge - coupled device and infra - red guidance system s . The AGM - 65 has two types of warhead : one has a contact fuze in the nose , the other has a heavyweight warhead fitted with a delayed - action fuze , which penetrates the target with its kinetic energy before detonating . The Maverick shares the same configuration as Hughes ' s AIM - 4 Falcon and AIM - 54 Phoenix , and measures more than in length and in diameter . Development . The Maverick ' s development history began in 1965 , when the United States Air Force ( USAF ) began a program to develop a replacement to the AGM - 12 Bullpup . With a range of , the radio - guided Bullpup was introduced in 1959 and was considered a " silver bullet " by operators . However , the launch aircraft was required to fly straight towards the target during the missile ' s flight instead of performing evasive manoeuvres , thus risking the crew . From 1966 to 1968 , Hughes Missile Systems and Rockwell competed for the contract to build the new missile . Each were allocated $ 3 million for preliminary design and engineering work of the Maverick in 1966 . In 1968 , Hughes emerged with the $ 95 million contract for further development and testing of the missile ; at the same time , contract options called for 17 , 000 missiles to be procured . Hughes conducted a smooth development of the AGM - 65 Maverick , culminating in the first , and successful , firing of the AGM - 65 on a tank at Air Force Missile Development Center at Holloman Air Force Base , New Mexico , on 18 December 1969 . In July 1971 , the USAF and Hughes signed a $ 69 . 9 million contract for 2 , 000 missiles , the first of which was delivered in 1972 . Although early operational results were favorable , military planners predicted that the Maverick would fare less successfully in the hazy conditions of Central Europe , where it would have been used against Warsaw Pact forces . As such , development of the AGM - 65B began in 1975 before it was delivered during the late 1970s . When production of the AGM - 65A / B was ended in 1978 , more than 35 , 000 missiles had been built . More versions of the Maverick appeared , among which was the laser - guided AGM - 65C / E . Development of the AGM - 65C started in 1978 by Rockwell , who built a number of development missiles for the USAF . Due to high cost , the version was not procured by the USAF , and instead entered service with the United States Marine Corps ( USMC ) as the AGM - 65E . Another major development was the AGM - 65D , which employed an imaging infrared ( IIR ) seeker and thus is all - weather operable . The five - year development period of the AGM - 65D started in 1977 and ended with the first delivery to the USAF in October 1983 . The version received initial operating capability in February 1986 . The AGM - 65F is a hybrid Maverick combining the AGM - 65D ' s IIR seeker and warhead and propulsion components of the AGM - 65E . Deployed by the United States Navy ( USN ) , the AGM - 65F is optimized for maritime strike roles . The first AGM - 65F launch from the P - 3C took place in 1989 , and in 1994 , the USN awarded Unisys a contract to integrate the version with the P - 3C . Meanwhile , Hughes produced the AGM - 65G , which essentially has the same guidance system as the D , with some software modifications that track larger targets , coupled with a shaped - charge warhead . In the mid - 1990s to early 2000s , there were several ideas of enhancing the Maverick ' s potential . Among them was the stillborn plan to incorporate the Mavericks active millimeter wave radar s , which can determine the exact shape of a target . Another study called " Longhorn Project " was conducted by Hughes , and later Raytheon following the absorption of Hughes into Raytheon , looked a Maverick version equipped with turbojet engines instead of rocket motors . The " Maverick ER " , as it was dubbed , would have a " significant increase in range " compared to the Maverick ' s current range of . The proposal was abandoned , but if the Maverick ER had entered production , it would have replaced the AGM - 119B Penguin carried on the MH - 60R . The most modern versions of the Maverick are the AGM - 65H / K , which were in production as of 2007 . The AGM - 65H was developed by coupling the AGM - 56B with a charge - coupled device ( CCD ) seeker optimized for desert operations and which has three times the range of the original TV - sensor ; a parallel USN program aimed at rebuilding AGM - 65Fs with newer CCD seekers resulted in the AGM - 65J . The AGM - 65K , meanwhile , was developed by replacing the AGM - 65G ' s IR guidance system with an electro - optical television guidance system . Design . The Maverick has a modular design construction , allowing a different combination of the guidance package and warhead to be attached to the rocket motor section to produce a different weapon . It has long - chord delta wings and a cylindrical body , reminiscent of the AIM - 4 Falcon and the AIM - 54 Phoenix . Different models of the AGM - 65 have used electro - optical , laser , and infra - red guidance systems . The AGM - 65 has two types of warhead s : one has a contact fuze in the nose , the other has a heavyweight warhead fitted with a delayed - action fuze , which penetrates the target with its kinetic energy before detonating . The latter is most effective against large , hard targets . The propulsion system for both types is a solid - fuel rocket motor behind the warhead . The Maverick missile is unable to lock onto targets on its own ; it has to be given input by the pilot or Weapon Systems Officer ( WSO ) after which it follows the path to the target autonomously , allowing the WSO to fire and forget . In an A - 10 Thunderbolt , for example , the video fed from the seeker head is relayed to a screen in the cockpit , where the pilot can check the locked target of the missile before launch . A crosshair on the head - up display is shifted by the pilot to set the approximate target while the missile will then automatically recognize and lock on to the target . Once the missile is launched , it requires no further assistance from the launch vehicle and tracks its target automatically . This fire - and - forget property is not shared by the E version that uses semi - active laser homing . Deployment . The Maverick was declared operational on 30 August 1972 with the F - 4D / Es and A - 7s initially cleared for the type ; the missile made its combat debut four months later with the USAF in the Vietnam War . During the Yom Kippur War in October 1973 , the Israelis used Mavericks to destroy and disable enemy vehicles . Deployment of early versions of the Mavericks in these two wars were successful due to the favorable atmospheric conditions that suited the electro - optical TV seeker . Ninety - nine missiles were fired during the two wars , eighty - four of which were successful . In June 1975 , during a border confrontation , Iranian troops fired twelve Mavericks , all successful , at Iraqi tanks . Five years later , during Operation " Morvarid " as part of the Iran – Iraq War , Iranian F - 4s used Mavericks to sink three OSA II missile boats and four P - 6 combat ships . In August 1990 , Iraq invaded Kuwait . In early 1991 , the US - led Coalition executed Operation " Desert Storm " during which Mavericks played a crucial role in the ousting of Iraqi forces from Kuwait . Employed by F - 15E Strike Eagle s , F - 18 Hornet s , AV - 8B Harrier s , F - 16 Fighting Falcon s and A - 10 Thunderbolts , but used mainly by the last two , more than 5 , 000 Mavericks were deployed to attack armored targets . The most - used variant by the USAF was the IIR - guided AGM - 65D . The reported hit rate by USAF Mavericks was 80 – 90 % , while for the USMC it was 60 % . The Maverick was used again in Iraq during the 2003 Iraq War , during which 918 were fired . The first time the Maverick were fired from a Lockheed P - 3 Orion at a hostile vessel was when the USN and coalition units came to the aid of Libyan rebels to engage the Libyan Coast Guard vessel " Vittoria " in the port of Misrata , Libya , during the late evening of 28 March 2011 . " Vittoria " was engaged and fired upon by a USN P - 3C Maritime Patrol aircraft with AGM - 65 Maverick missiles . Iranian AGM - 65 Maverick missiles have been used in various operations such as Fatholmobin whereas Iranian AH - 1J ' s fired 11 Mavericks . Launch platforms . United States . LAU - 117 Maverick launchers have been used on USN , USAF , and USMC aircraft : Export . The Maverick has been exported to at least 30 countries : Rhodesian Air Force ( very late in the war )