Missile designation

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The U.S. Department of Defense established a missile and rocket designation sequence, which is used in all weapons of the kind produced in the USA.

1 Explanation
2 The code
3 Prefixes
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] Explanation

The basic designation of every guided missile is based in a set of letters, which are in sequence. The sequence indicates the following:

The environment from which the weapon is launched
The primary mission of the weapon
The type of weapon

Examples of guided missile designators are as follows:

AGM - (A) Air-launched (G) Surface-attack (M) Guided missile
AIM - (A) Air-launched (I) Intercept-aerial (M) Guided missile
ATM - (A) Air-launched (T) Training (M) Guided missile
RIM - (R) Ship-launched (I) Intercept-aerial (M) Guided missile

The design or project number follows the basic designator. In turn, the number may be followed by consecutive letters, representing modifications.

Example:

RGM-84D means:

R - The weapon is ship-launched;
G - The weapon is designed to surface-attack;
M - The weapon is a guided missile;
84 - eighty-four missile design;
D - fourth modification;

In addition, most guided missiles have names, such as Harpoon, Tomahawk, Seasparrow, etc. These names are retained regardless of subsequent modifications to the missile.

[edit] The code

**First letter designating launch environment**
Letter	Launch environment	Detailed description
A	Air	Air launched
B	Multiple	Capable of being launched from more than one environment
C	Coffin or Container	Stored horizontally or at less than a 45 degree angle in a protective enclosure and launched from the ground
F	Individual or Infantry	Carried and launched by one man
L	Land or Silo	Launched from a fixed site or hardend silo
M	Mobile	Launched from a ground vehicle or moveable platform
P	Soft Pad	Partially or unprotected in storage and launched from the ground
U	Underwater	Launched from a submarine or other underwater device
R	Surface ship	Launched from a surface vessel such as a ship, barge, etc.

Second letter designating mission symbol
Letter	Mission	Detailed description
D	Decoy	Vehicles designed or modified to confuse, deceive, or divert enemy defenses by simulating an attack vehicle
E	Special Electronic	Vehicles designed or modified with electronics equipment for communications, countermeasures, electronic radiation sounding, or other electronic recording or relay missions
G	Surface Attack	Vehicles designed to destroy enemy land or sea targets
I	Intercept-Aerial	Vehicles designed to intercept aerial targets in defensive roles
Q	Drone	Vehicles designed for target reconnaissance or surveillance
T	Training	Vehicles designed or permanently modified for training purposes
U	Underwater attack	Vehicles designed to destroy enemy submarines or other underwater targets, or to detonate underwater
W	Weather	Vehicles designed to observe, record, or relay data pertaining to meteorological phenomena

Third letter designating vehicle type symbol
Letter	Vehicle type	Detailed description
M	Guided Missile	An unmanned, self-propelled vehicle with remote or internal trajectory guidance
R	Rocket	A self propelled vehicle whose flight trajectory cannot be altered after launch
N	Probe	A non-orbital instrumented vehicle used to monitor and transmit environmental information