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I was just reading about how the USMC is adding the capability to fire the new laser guided APKWS II rockets to their F/A-18C/D fleet.
Rocket? No, rockets aren't guided.
The AGR-20A is guided, therefore, missile.
The neat thing is it's a standard 2.75" rocket in format, so it can be fired from any 2.75"/70mm launcher in the inventory. Just need a laser designator to guide it with.
That's a 7-shot launcher for the Marines. Up to 8 such launchers can be carried on a legacy Hornet.
It makes me wonder where the old LAU-3/A's go. Those hold 19 rounds each.
The more modern, and probably more compatible LAU-69D/A also holds 19 rounds.
The bigger launchers have more drag, of course, but it'd mean 152 shots instead of 56 if 8 launchers were carried.
I know the USMC and Navy don't like triple ejector racks any more, but that'd add four more launchers to the plane and 28 more missiles in the 7-shot launchers.
But the part that tickled my fancy is how many planes used to have 2.75" unguided folding fin rockets built into them. The FFAR becomes the Hydra...
And an F-8 Crusader gets 32 laser guided missiles fired from the belly tray... If we had any Crusaders that still had the tray and were flyable.
But laser guidance would have made the concept viable in a way that the unguided mighty mouse wasn't.
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