Raytheon Company is marking the 40th anniversary of the combat-proven AGM-65 Maverick missile. Maverick was first produced and delivered to the U.S. Air Force in August of 1972. Raytheon has continued to evolve the missile to meet today’s needs.

Maverick is a versatile precision-guided missile that is effective against a wide variety of fixed, stationary, moving and maneuvering targets, both on land and at sea. With more than 7,800 launched in combat, Maverick is employed by the United States Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and allied nations, on more than 25 types of aircraft.

“Maverick routinely demonstrates its effectiveness against a variety of targets, some at speeds in excess of 70 miles per hour,” said Harry Schulte, vice president of Raytheon Missile Systems’ Air Warfare Systems product line. “As evidenced by our restart of the Laser Maverick production line, we continue to evolve the missile to meet today’s operational requirements and tomorrow’s needs.”

The three seeker choices enable the warfighter to conduct around-the-clock operations. Today’s Maverick also features two warhead options: a 300-pound blast fragmentation or a 125-pound shaped charge; both provide lethal effects with minimal collateral damage.

In active use by U.S. armed forces today, the infrared-guided AGM-65F Maverick was successfully employed during Operation Odyssey Dawn. The laser-guided Maverick missile (AGM-65E) is a direct-attack, air-to-ground precision munition that is being used by the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps in ongoing global operations.

Laser Maverick (AGM-65L/E2) features an enhanced laser seeker and new software that reduces the risk of collateral damage. It can use onboard, buddy and/or ground-based lasing to designate targets. In December 2011, the Air Force awarded Raytheon a $25 million contract to restart production of the laser-guided Maverick missile; deliveries are scheduled to begin in late 2012.

Raytheon press release