Harpoon is a U.S.-origin anti-ship cruise missile family used from aircraft, surface ships, submarines, and coastal launchers. The family combines sea-skimming flight with active radar terminal homing, while Block II adds GPS-aided inertial navigation for littoral anti-ship and land-attack missions and Block II+ adds a network-enabled upgrade path. Cataloged conflict use ranges from Iranian and Saudi naval launches in the late Cold War and Gulf War period to truck-mounted RGM-84 coastal defense missiles supplied for Ukraine's Black Sea defense.
During Operation Praying Mantis in the Tanker War phase of the Iran-Iraq War, Iranian patrol boat Joshan launched a Harpoon at USS Wainwright; the missile missed after the U.S. ship used chaff.
On 24 January 1991, a Royal Saudi vessel used a Harpoon anti-ship missile to sink an Iraqi minelayer in the northern Persian Gulf, according to the U.S. Navy Desert Storm chronology.
Role detailsUkraine received and deployed land-based Harpoon anti-ship missile systems for Black Sea coastal defense, including Danish coastal-defense missiles reported as RGM-84L-4 Harpoon Block II; U.S. officials later described truck-launched RGM-84 Harpoons supplied through partner arrangements as used by Ukraine against Russian vessels in June 2022.
Role detailsHarpoon designations primarily identify launch mode and block standard: AGM for air launch, RGM for ship or shore launch, and UGM for submarine launch.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
 | Block IC family member | The D-series Block IC appears across air, surface, and submarine launch modes; the linked support page focuses on the air-launched AGM-84D evidence. Sources: Designation Systems: AGM/RGM/UGM-84 Harpoon, P-8A Poseidon fires Harpoon, hits mark |
| Block II | GPS-aided anti-ship and land-strike upgrade | Boeing and NAVAIR describe Block II as adding GPS-aided inertial navigation for anti-ship, congested-littoral, coastal-target, and land-attack missions while retaining multi-platform Harpoon launch compatibility. Sources: Harpoon Block II Product Card, NAVAIR Harpoon Product Page, Boeing Harpoon Block II Missile Tested by U.S. Navy, Boeing Harpoon Block II Missile Successfully Attacks Land Target |
| Block II+ / HIIU | Network-enabled and obsolescence-update branch | NAVAIR says Block II+ adds a new GPS guidance kit, datalink interface, in-flight updates, target-selectivity and abort features, while the 2026 HIIU flight-test series modernized Block II for continued production and mixed anti-ship and land-strike mission sets. Sources: NAVAIR Harpoon Product Page, NAVAIR Harpoon Block II Update Flight Test |
| AGM-84E SLAM / SLAM-ER | Land-attack derivative | SLAM and SLAM-ER are Harpoon-derived land-attack missiles, but their target set and guidance package are distinct from the anti-ship Harpoon rows above. |
| Carrier | Carrier type | Carriage evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | Carrier-capable multirole strike fighter | NAVAIR lists Harpoon among the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet's armament. Sources: F/A-18E/F Super Hornet (NAVAIR) |
 | Maritime patrol aircraft | Boeing's chronology records a successful first drop test of the Harpoon anti-ship missile from a U.S. Navy P-3C Orion patrol aircraft. Sources: Boeing chronology |
 | Carrier-capable strike fighter | NAVAIR lists Harpoon among the Hornet's armament. Sources: F/A-18 A-D Hornet |
 | Long-range heavy bomber | A U.S. Air Force photo caption shows a B-52H Stratofortress carrying the AGM-84D Harpoon missile. Sources: AGM-84D Harpoon |
 | Fighter aircraft family | Boeing's Advanced F-15 weapons inventory lists AGM-84 Harpoon Block II among the aircraft's external carriage options. Sources: Advanced F-15 Weapons Inventory |
| Launcher | Launcher type | Launch evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | Anti-submarine frigate | Bundeswehr lists two launchers for RGM-84 Harpoon on the Brandenburg class. Sources: Fregatten der Brandenburg-Klasse |
 | Stabilization frigate | Bundeswehr lists two starters for RGM-84 Harpoon on the Baden-Württemberg-class frigates, giving the class an over-the-horizon anti-ship missile fit. Sources: Bundeswehr: Fregatten der Baden-Wuerttemberg-Klasse |
 | Carrier-based attack aircraft | Naval Aviation News documents VA-85 A-6E Intruders launching Harpoon from USS Saratoga, confirming the missile's air-launched role. Sources: Naval Aviation News Harpoon Launch |
 | Maritime patrol aircraft | NAVAIR says a P-8A Poseidon successfully fired a Harpoon AGM-84D Block IC missile from station 10 during live-fire testing. |
| Compatible item | Item type | Compatibility evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | Fighter aircraft | Shaw AFB's F-16C Fighting Falcon fact sheet says Block 50/52 aircraft fully integrate the AGM-84 Harpoon anti-shipping missile. Sources: F-16C Fighting Falcon |
Harpoon is best read as a missile family rather than a single launcher configuration. The designation prefix usually identifies how the missile leaves the platform, while block suffixes describe guidance, range, network, and software changes.
| Designation family | Launch mode | Reader note |
|---|---|---|
| AGM-84 | Aircraft launch | Air-launched Harpoons appear on maritime patrol aircraft, strike fighters, and selected bombers. |
| RGM-84 | Surface, shore, or truck launch | RGM rows cover ship canisters, fixed or mobile coastal-defense launchers, and Ukraine's truck-launched donor systems. |
| UGM-84 | Submarine launch | Submarine-launched variants use a capsule before the missile transitions to powered flight above the surface. |
| Block II and later | Guidance and mission upgrades | Boeing and NAVAIR describe Block II as adding GPS-aided inertial navigation, while Block II+ adds network-enabled in-flight update features. |
| SLAM / SLAM-ER | Land-attack derivative | These AGM-84 derivatives share Harpoon lineage but are separated here because their land-attack seeker and mission profile differ from the anti-ship missile rows. |
Sources: Harpoon Missile; Harpoon Block II Product Card; NAVAIR Harpoon Product Page; Designation Systems: AGM/RGM/UGM-84 Harpoon.
Naval History and Heritage Command describes Iranian and U.S. Harpoon launches during Operation Praying Mantis, including Joshan's shot at Wainwright and Harpoons fired at Sahand.
Sources: NHHC H-Gram Operation Praying Mantis
The U.S. Navy Desert Storm chronology records a Royal Saudi vessel using a Harpoon anti-ship missile to sink an Iraqi minelayer in the northern Persian Gulf.
Sources: NHHC Desert Storm January 1991 Chronology
USNI News reported that Ukraine had deployed Harpoon anti-ship missiles to the edge of the Black Sea for coastal defense.
Sources: Ukraine Deploys Anti-Ship Harpoon Missiles to the Edge of Black Sea, MoD Says
NAVAIR reported that the third Harpoon Block II Update flight test used an F-15 launch profile against a representative land target, following earlier events for guidance performance and a moving maritime surface target.
Sources: NAVAIR Harpoon Block II Update Flight Test
