Raytheon AIM7 Sparrow
The Sparrow Air-to-Air Missile (AAM) began as Project Hot-Shot in 1946 under contract from the US Navy. However, full engineering development of Sparrow I did not start …
Period: Post-WWII
Hawker-Siddeley Blue Steel
Started privately by AV Roe in 1954, a contract was eventually placed by the Ministry of Supply in 1956 for a stand-off missile to carry a Thermonuclear …
Hawker-Siddeley Red Top – Air to Air Missile
The Red Top Air-to-Air Missile was originally called Firestreak IV. However, it so radically improved Firestreak’s capabilities, that a new name was more appropriate. The requirement for …
Fairey Fireflash
The Fireflash Air-to-Air Missile project started in 1949 as the ‘Blue Sky’ project. The missile had a strikingly unusual configuration that has yet to be repeated. The …
Fairey Separation Test Vehicle (STV)
The Fairey STV was developed in 1950 to test solid booster separation mechanisms for the Fairey Fireflash air-to air guided missile. The vehicle used an inert body …
Hai Ying 2G Seersucker
This Seersucker missile was recovered from Umm Qasar in Southern Iraq by RAF officers after the Gulf War. A missile of this type was fired at Royal …
Australian Government Aircraft Factories Malkara
This Australian anti-tank missile was developed in 1951, following up on German wartime research especially in wire-guidance. The Australian Government supported the development with assistance from the …
British Aerospace Dynamics Sea Skua
This Air-to-Surface Missile uses a semi-active radar homing guidance system and its first application was aboard the Lynx helicopter using the Ferranti Seaspray radar illuminator. The Lynx …
British Aerospace Rapier
Based on a 1964 development programme, Rapier entered service with the British Army and RAF Regiment in June 1967. Rapier is a Hitile, so called because it …
British Aerospace SRAAM
As a result of the Vietnam War, which highlighted the need for positive visual identification of targets before missile launch, a new need for a Short Range …
British Aircraft Corporation Bloodhound
The development of the Bloodhound Mk2 surface-to-air missile (SAM) began in 1958, with the aim of improving the performance of the already successful Mk1 version. The development …
British Aircraft Corporation Swingfire
Swingfire is an anti-tank missile which owes its development to the Vigilant and Orange William projects. It was in 1960 that Swingfire was produced using Thrust Vectored …
British Aircraft Corporation Thunderbird
During World War II, a British SAM programme was established with the system known as Brankemine. Although the missile programme was inadequately funded, the first test firing …
Douglas Thor
In 1955 the USAF started to develop an Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM). The project, designated 315A, was given top priority. In December 1955, the Douglas Aircraft …
Douglas XGAM87 Skybolt
In 1958 several US contractors demonstrated to the USAF that large ballistic vehicles could be launched from strategic bombers at high altitude. The contractors argued that this …