Hellfire II has 4 laser warhead variations

ORLANDO, Fla., Feb. 5 (UPI) -- U.S. company Lockheed Martin says its Hellfire II air-to-ground precision missile now has four laser warhead variations.

"The modular Hellfire II includes four semi-active laser warhead variations – 1 -- the high-explosive anti-tank -- HEAT -- missile, or AGM-114K, which defeats all known and projected armored threats; 2 -- the AGM-114M blast fragmentation missile, which is effective against primary target sets such as boats, buildings, bunkers and light-armored vehicles; 3 -- the metal augmented charge missile, or AGM-114N, which defeats enclosures, caves and enemy personnel housed therein; and: 4 -- the recently introduced augmented HEAT warhead, AGM-114K-A, which adds blast fragmentation to the HEAT warhead's anti-tank capability, providing precision strike against soft targets in the open," Lockheed Martin said in a statement Monday.

"The Tiger is able to carry up to eight Hellfire missiles on two four-rail M299 launchers," said Ken Musculus, program director of Air-to-Ground Missile Systems at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control. "Both the M299 and its smaller variant are able to carry and fire any combination of the four variants, giving a single aircraft the ability to engage and defeat a broad target set with unprecedented reliability and precision."

"Hellfire II is launched from a wide array of platforms, including the U.S. Army's Apache and Kiowa Warrior helicopters; the U.S. Marine Corps' Cobra; the U.S. Navy's Seahawk helicopter; the (British armed forces') Apache attack helicopter; the Eurocopter Tiger and the U.S. Air Force's Predator and Reaper unmanned aerial vehicles. Norway and Sweden also employ Hellfire missiles launched from tripods in a coastal defense model," Lockheed Martin said.

"With more than 21,000 rounds delivered, HELLFIRE II is licensed for international sales, via government-to-government or direct commercial sales contracts," the company said.

Lockheed Martin said it "employs about 140,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The corporation reported 2007 sales of $41.9 billion."