AGM-12 Bullpup

AGM-12 Bullpup
AGM-12C Bullpup B Missile at the Air Force Armament Museum
TypeAir-to-ground command guided missile
Place of originUnited States
Service history
In serviceASM-N-7 1959–1970s ASM-N-7A/AGM-12B 1965–1970s
Used byUnited States, Australia, Denmark, Greece, Israel, Norway, Taiwan, Turkey, United Kingdom
WarsVietnam War
Production history
ManufacturerMartin Marietta, W.L. Maxson
Produced1959–1970
No. built22,100 (total)

4,600 (AGM-12C)


840 (AGM-12E)
VariantsASM-N-7, ASM-N-7A/AGM-12B, AGM-12C, GAM-83B/AGM-12D, AGM-12E
Specifications
Mass1,785 pounds (810 kg) (AGM-12C)
Length13.6 feet (4.1 m)
Diameter18 inches (460 mm)
Wingspan48 inches (1.2 m)
WarheadConventional high-explosive (ASM-N-7, ASM-N-7A/AGM-12B)

Semi armor-piercing (AGM-12C)
W45 Nuclear (GAM-83B/AGM-12D)


Cluster munition (AGM-12E)
Warhead weight250 pounds (110 kg) (ASM-N-7A/AGM-12B) 970 pounds (440 kg) (AGM-12C)

EngineRocket
30,000 pounds-force (130 kN)
PropellantSolid (AGM-12A model), Storable, liquid-fuel (others)
Operational
range
10 nautical miles (12 mi; 19 km)
Maximum speed approx. Mach 2
Guidance
system
Line-of-sight radio command
Launch
platform
FJ-4B, A-4D, F-4, F-8, F-105, Draken, F-5A/B Freedom Fighter, F-100 (among others)

The AGM-12 Bullpup is a short-range air-to-ground missile developed by Martin Marietta for the US Navy. It is among the earliest precision guided air-to-ground weapons and the first to be mass produced. It first saw operational use in 1959 on the A-4 Skyhawk, but soon found use on the A-6 Intruder, F-100 Super Sabre, F-105 Thunderchief, F-4 Phantom II, F-8 Crusader, and P-3 Orion in both Navy and US Air Force service, as well as NATO allies. The weapon was guided manually via a small joystick in the aircraft cockpit, which presented a number of problems and its ultimate accuracy was on the order of 10 metres (33 ft), greater than desired. In the 1960s it was increasingly supplanted by fully automatic weapons like the AGM-62 Walleye and AGM-65 Maverick.