AGM-65 Maverick

The AGM-65 Maverick is an air-to-ground missile designed for close air support, effective against armor, air defenses, ships, ground transportation, and fuel storage facilities, and it is the most widely produced precision-guided missile in the Western world. Development began in 1966 at Hughes Aircraft Company, and it entered service with the United States Air Force in August 1972, going on to be exported to more than thirty countries and certified on twenty-five aircraft. The Maverick saw combat in the Vietnam, Yom Kippur, Iran-Iraq, and Persian Gulf wars, and later versions used electro-optical, laser, and imaging infrared guidance.