Northrop Delivers 1000th AGM-88E Anti-Radiation Guided Missile

Northrop Grumman has delivered the 1000th AGM-88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM) supersonic, air-launched tactical missile system to the US Navy.

A ceremony at the Northrop Grumman production facility in Northridge, California, commemorated the occasion, the company said in a statement.

Northrop claims that the AARGM provides the critical ability to detect and defeat surface-to-air-threats enabling the penetration of adversary anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) domains required by US warfighters and allies.

“The 1,000th delivery showcases the progress made by our joint team since the program began as a Small Business Innovation Research program over a decade ago,” said Gordon Turner, vice president, defense electronic systems, Northrop Grumman.

The AARGM program achieved Initial Operational Capability (IOC) in July 2012, and is currently deployed and supporting operational requirements for the US Navy, US Marine Corps, Italian Air Force and Royal Australian Air Force. The missile is integrated into the weapons systems on the FA-18C/D Hornet, FA-18E/F Super Hornet, EA-18G Growler aircraft and on the Tornado Electronic Combat and Reconnaissance (ECR) aircraft.