Unpacking JAGM's Joint Multi-Role Potential: Weapon of the Week

If there's a word that best describes what American military leadership is looking for in today's weapon systems, it's versatility

They want systems that can serve multiple purposes across multiple platforms. It's a description that certainly fits the joint air-to-ground missile, the Jagum, and that's why it's our weapon of the week

Officially known as the AGM-179 and built by Lockheed Martin, the Jagam was designed to

replace the aging Hellfire and TOW missiles on rotary wing and unmanned aircraft

In use since 2022, the Jagam represents a progression in air-to-ground missile technology

offering a more versatile, precise, lethal, and adaptable weapon system that can take on

a wide array of battlefield challenges. So the missile is effective against air threats

ground threats, and maritime threats. And regardless of what platform I operate the missile from

whether from aircraft, from ships, or from ground systems, the missile is capable against those

threats. The Jagum comes in two variants, the MR for medium-range targets and the F for the

fighter, fixed wing, fast mover crowd. You can increase the range of mission sets for the Jagum

by throwing it in a quad launcher too, which can then be mounted on a vehicle or a vessel at sea making it a very capable piece of any unit arsenal With our concept the ship can maintain on station and provide a reload by drawing missiles

out of the magazine, sourcing the launcher. And then as you draw missiles from the magazine

should you need more, I can bring missiles out to the ship, refill the magazine so the

ship can stay on station for much longer periods of time. One of the biggest problems the Jagum addresses that previous systems, like the Hellfire, had issues with is its ability to see the target no matter what's clouding the picture on the battlefield

Mark Mahaffey, a retired marine helicopter pilot and now a senior business development manager for Lockheed Martin, says the guidance capability of the Jagum makes it a difference maker

It's got a dual-mode seeker. It's got both a semi-active laser seeker and an active millimeter wave sensor, which gives the missile a true fire-and-forget capability

Because of that capability, other services, other platforms are looking at it as an affordable option to address the emerging threats on the battlefield today

The U.S. Army, Navy, and Marine Corps are the primary users of the JAGEM

But Uncle Sam said it's okay to sell them to the United Kingdom and the Netherlands

And the Texas of Europe, Poland, is also planning to acquire the missile

I'm allowed to make that joke, Texas. I was born there, and I remember a world with fur's cafeteria