Hardpoint A hardpoint , or weapon station , is any part of an airframe designed to carry an external load . This includes a point on the wing or fuselage of military aircraft where external ordnance , countermeasure s , gun pod s , targeting pod s or drop tanks can be mounted . Types of hardpoints . Rail launchers . Large missiles and rockets are typically mounted on rail - type launchers and are propelled clear of the aircraft under the power of their own rocket engine . The exceptions are aircraft such as the F - 4 Phantom II , the F - 18 , and the Panavia Tornado ADV that have missiles that are semi - recessed into the fuselage to reduce drag , and hence use ejector launchers that first propel the missile clear of the aircraft before igniting the motor . Ejector racks . Free - fall stores and sometimes missiles and rockets are suspended from an ejector rack , which may be an integral part of or mounted on a pylon , which is in turn mounted in the hardpoint . The pylon is designed to position the rack and its stores to keep them clear of control surfaces and position them close to the aircraft ' s center of gravity . The modular separation of the pylons and racks simplifies maintenance and allows for upgrades and modifications . The mechanical interface between the rack and various stores is standardized so that a single type of rack can carry different stores . With the aid of a multiple - ejector rack , an aircraft may carry several weapons on one hardpoint , subject to various considerations of clearance , weight , drag , radar signature , and technological limitations . For NATO - standardized stores , the stores are mounted onto the rack by means of lugs mounted on the store , spaced either 14 " apart for lighter stores or 30 " apart for heavier items . These lugs are engaged by L - shaped hooks in the rack . The rack is equipped with explosive cartridges to disengage the suspension hooks and propel the store clear of the aircraft in a consistent manner to aid the precision of unguided gravity bombs . Some racks contain an auxiliary cartridge in the event that the primary cartridges fail to fire . The rack will also have accessories such as arming solenoids to pull arming wires from fuzes , and ports for data , video or electrical fuzing . To keep stores from rocking sideways as the aircraft maneuvers , sway braces are provided to steady the stores . These may be automatically or manually adjusted . Wet hardpoint . A wet hardpoint is a hardpoint which is plumbed and thus capable of interfacing with a drop tank mounted on it to feed fuel from these tanks . The additional fuel extends the aircraft ' s flight range and duration . Drop tanks can be jettisoned if there is a need to reduce drag or weight during the flight . Wet hardpoints may also mount weapons as with other ' dry ' hardpoints . Swing - wing aircraft . Any hardpoints on swing - wing s must swivel to minimize drag , such as on the General Dynamics F - 111 and the Panavia Tornado . Alternatively , the hardpoints can be placed on a rigid part of the aircraft , such under the fuselage or on fixed wing gloves as on the F - 14 Tomcat and Mikoyan MiG - 27 . On the F - 111 not all hardpoints can be used if the plane is to operate with fully swept wings because of the narrowed spacing between pylons . Designation . Hardpoints on aircraft are numbered from left to right . . For example , the Boeing F / A - 18A / B / C / D family has nine weapons stations : Other usages . By extension of the common usage , the word hardpoint is sometimes used to refer to a point on " any " vehicle where weapons or other accessories can be attached .