Colin Kahl, the under secretary of defense for policy, said at a press briefing that the US had sent “a number” of the missiles without specifying how many the US has provided or when they were sent. Kahl did not explicitly say what type of anti-radiation missile was sent.
A defense official told CNN the type of missile sent was the AGM-88 High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missile (HARM).
I actually was a thermal analyst for the design of this missile, or more accurately the early version AGM-88A, at Texas Instruments. That was back in 1977-8, and I document that (along with other facts about the missile) here. What I’ve been curious about–and I’ve gotten some answers on Twitter–as to how they plan to integrate the missile with the Russian aircraft the Ukrainians have. Even though it’s been out there for 40+ years, the HARM is a fairly sophisticated weapon (it certainly was back in the day!) and integrating it is more than just strapping it on the wing and taking off.
One possible use that’s been floated is ground launching. That’s been thought of before; it was something of a joke in my design group that, in addition to the F-4 (which was an early craft it was launched from) that we would analyse it to launch it from an F-100, the Ford pickup truck! But I don’t think that’s the best way to do this.
One thing that wasn’t an issue at the time that should be considered now is the effect of anti-rocket and anti-missile systems (Israel’s Iron Dome is the best known, but there are others.) When the U.S. used them in Iraq, they blinded Saddam Hussein’s radar system in short order, but with advances in technology and a different opponent the task will doubtless be more difficult.
It’s amazing that some things one does in life come around so many years later, and this missile is one of them.
Chet Aero Marine 