Jim Bryan, director of Boeing Cruise Missile Systems said that the aerospace company had tested electro-optical and infrared sensors on its Harpoon anti-ship missile.
He added that those sensors are better in bad weather and difficult lighting conditions on the water.
The Harpoon (RGM-84/UGM-84/AGM-84) is a U.S.-designed subsonic antiship cruise missile that has been in service since 1977. It is an all-weather, over-the-horizon, anti-ship missile system, developed and manufactured by McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing Defense, Space & Security). In 2004, Boeing delivered the 7,000th Harpoon unit since the weapon’s introduction in 1977. The missile system has also been further developed into a land-strike weapon, the Standoff Land Attack Missile (SLAM).
The regular Harpoon uses active radar homing, and a low-level, sea-skimming cruise trajectory to improve survivability and lethality.
