Munitions

SS.11 anti-tank missile

Also known as
  • Nord SS.11
  • SS-11
  • SS.11A1
  • SS.11B1
  • AS.11
  • AGM-22
  • XAGM-22A
  • XAGM-22B
  • AGM-22B
  • ATM-22B
  • XATM-22B
  • Nord 5210
  • Nord-5210
  • Model 5210
  • M22 armament subsystem
  • SS.11M
  • Harpon

The SS.11 was a French wire-guided anti-tank missile developed by Nord Aviation as the heavier Model 5210 successor to the SS.10. First fielded by the French Army in 1956, it was sized for vehicle, ship, aircraft, and helicopter launch, and documented conflict use spans Algeria, Vietnam, the Six-Day War, and the Falklands.

SS.11 anti-tank missile, Wire-guided anti-tank missile, Munitions
Image source: Wikimedia Commons: Missile antichar Nord SS.11 Saumur.jpg

Role in Conflicts

Algerian War
Fire Support
Side
French forces

French forces used AS.11/SS.11 missiles from MD.311 aircraft against fortified guerrilla cave positions during the Algerian War.

1955 Vietnam War
Anti-ArmorFire Support
Side
United States and South Vietnam

U.S. Army UH-1 helicopters used M22 SS.11B missiles in Vietnam, including an October 1966 bunker strike in Binh Dinh Province and later Southeast Asia deployments.

1967 Six-Day War
Anti-Armor
Side
Israel

Israeli forces fielded SS.10 and SS.11 French anti-tank guided missiles in the force structure described for the 1967 Abu-Ageila fighting.

1982 Falklands War
Fire Support
Side
United Kingdom

British Westland Scout helicopters from the Army Air Corps and 3 Commando Brigade Air Squadron fired SS.11 missiles at Argentine positions near Stanley Racecourse on 14 June 1982.

Profile / Specs

Profile

Origin
France
Type
Wire-guided anti-tank missile
Service note
Cold War; 1956-early 1980s production
Designer
Nord Aviation
Designed
Development began in 1953 as Nord Model 5210
Produced
1956-early 1980s
Number built
More than 180,000 rounds reported by Designation-Systems.net
Developed from
SS.10 anti-tank missile
Developed into
SS.12 anti-tank missile family

Specifications

Class
Wire-guided anti-armour missile; French SS designation meant surface-to-surface, while AS.11 covered air-to-surface use
Guidance
Manual command to line of sight over an unspooling wire command link
Tracking cue
Operator tracked a tail flare and steered with a small control stick in U.S. AGM-22B/M22 service
Range
About 3,000 m for the AGM-22B/SS.11B1 data set
Length
119 cm
Wingspan
50 cm
Diameter
16.4 cm
Weight
About 30 kg
Speed
About 685 km/h in the AGM-22B data set
Propulsion
Two-stage boost/sustain solid-fuel rocket motor
Warhead
6.8 kg Type 140AC anti-armour warhead in AGM-22B data; French Type 140 family also included blast-fragmentation, anti-personnel, and anti-ship warheads
Launch platforms
Intended for vehicle, ship, and later helicopter launch; U.S. M22 helicopter installation carried six SS.11B/AGM-22 missiles on UH-1B Huey helicopters
U.S. designation
SS.11A1 became XAGM-22A; SS.11B1 became XAGM-22B/AGM-22B; the training round became XATM-22B/ATM-22B
Launch And Guidance Context

The SS.11 kept the first-generation wire-guided control concept but scaled it beyond the infantry-portable SS.10. Its heavier motor and warhead made it better suited to mounted launchers, while helicopter installations turned the same basic missile into a manually steered air-to-ground weapon.

Control method

The operator watched a flare on the missile, then sent steering commands through a wire link with a small control stick.

Mounted launch logic

Designation histories describe the Model 5210 as too heavy for the SS.10 infantry role, shifting the family toward vehicles, ships, and later helicopters.

U.S. helicopter fit

In U.S. Army nomenclature, six SS.11B missiles installed on a UH-1B Huey formed the M22 armament subsystem.

Swedish naval fit

Swedish Naval Museum imagery documents Nord SS.11 missiles mounted on Swedish Navy torpedo boats as Robot 53 anti-ship weapons.

Variants

The SS.11 designation covers a French surface-launched missile family, the related AS.11 air-to-surface designation, U.S. AGM/ATM designations, and later specialized or guidance-improved branches.

VariantConfigurationDesignation notes
SS.11A1Early evaluation missile

U.S. evaluation missiles used the SS.11A1 designation before the 1963 AGM-22 redesignation.

Sources: Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22

SS.11B1 / AGM-22BImproved U.S. helicopter missile

The U.S. Army bought the improved SS.11B1, with solid-state electronics, for UH-1B helicopter use; it became XAGM-22B and later AGM-22B.

Sources: Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22, U.S. Army: Air-to-Ground Missiles in Vietnam

XATM-22B / ATM-22BTraining round

Designation-Systems.net maps the SS.11B1 training round to XATM-22B, later ATM-22B.

Sources: Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22

AS.11Air-to-surface designation

French nomenclature used AS.11 for the air-launched version, while U.S. Army documents and designations continued through the SS.11/AGM-22 line.

Sources: Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22

SS.11MMaritime branch

Open designation histories identify SS.11M as the maritime surface-to-surface anti-ship branch using the same missile family.

Sources: Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22

HarponGuidance-improved branch

Open designation histories describe Harpon as the SS.11 branch associated with a semi-automatic command-to-line-of-sight guidance improvement.

Sources: Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22

Timeline

SS.11 anti-tank missile Key Events

  1. Model 5210 development begins

    Nord began developing the heavier Model 5210 from the SS.10 line, trading infantry portability for greater range, motor size, and warhead effect.

    Sources: Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22

  2. French Army fields SS.11

    The missile entered French Army service as the SS.11 and became part of Nord Aviation's early mass-produced anti-tank missile line.

    Sources: Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22, MBDA history: Nord anti-tank missiles

  3. U.S. evaluation purchase approved

    After cancellation of the Dart anti-tank missile, the U.S. Army approved SS.11 purchases for air-launched anti-armour evaluation.

    Sources: Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22

  4. UH-1B M22 helicopter fit

    The U.S. Army approved the improved SS.11B1 for UH-1B use; a six-missile helicopter installation was known as the M22 armament subsystem.

    Sources: Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22, U.S. Army: Air-to-Ground Missiles in Vietnam

  5. AGM-22 redesignation

    U.S. SS.11 missiles were mapped into the AGM-22 designation series, including XAGM-22A, XAGM-22B/AGM-22B, and XATM-22B/ATM-22B.

    Sources: Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22

  6. Production ends after large export run

    Aérospatiale production ended in the early 1980s after more than 180,000 rounds had reportedly been built.

    Sources: Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22

  7. M22 leaves regular U.S. Army inventory

    The U.S. Army history states that the M22 subsystem was eventually replaced by airborne TOW and phased out of the regular inventory in May 1984.

    Sources: U.S. Army: Air-to-Ground Missiles in Vietnam

Media

SS.11 anti-tank missile Videos

SS.11 anti-tank missile Images

SS.11 anti-tank missile, Wire-guided anti-tank missile, Munitions - view 1
Source: Wikimedia Commons: UH-1A Huey launches SS.11 missile c1960.jpg
SS.11 anti-tank missile, Wire-guided anti-tank missile, Munitions - view 2
Source: Wikimedia Commons: UH-1 helicopter armed with SS.11 (in colour).jpg
SS.11 anti-tank missile, Wire-guided anti-tank missile, Munitions - view 3
Source: Wikimedia Commons: Swedish Navy Nord SS.11 1958 V17004.jpg
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Sources

MBDA history: Nord anti-tank missilesPublisher: MBDA | Note: Supports Nord Aviation mass production of anti-tank missiles in Bourges and the SS.11 and SS.12 succession after SS.10. | Accessed: 2026-07-13Designation-Systems.net: Aérospatiale (Nord) SS.11/AGM-22Publisher: Designation-Systems.net | Note: Supports SS.11 development from SS.10, Model 5210 identity, 1956 fielding, U.S. evaluation and AGM-22 designations, launch-platform context, production end period, production quantity, variants, warhead family, and key specifications. | Accessed: 2026-07-13U.S. Army: Air-to-Ground Missiles in VietnamPublisher: U.S. Army | Note: Supports U.S. Army M22/SS.11B UH-1B helicopter subsystem context, manual wire-guidance description, M22 missiles used by U.S. Army aviators in the 1955 Vietnam War, replacement by airborne TOW, and May 1984 regular-inventory phaseout. | Accessed: 2026-07-13COIN: French Counter-Insurgency Aircraft, 1946-1965Publisher: Chandelle | Note: Supports French forces used AS.11/SS.11 missiles from MD.311 aircraft against fortified cave positions during the Algerian War. | Accessed: 2026-07-13Key to the Sinai: The Battles for Abu-AgeilaPublisher: Combat Studies Institute / Army University Press | Note: Supports Israeli forces fielded SS.10 and SS.11 French anti-tank guided missiles in the Abu-Ageila order of battle during the 1967 Six-Day War. | Accessed: 2026-07-13Scouts HELARM - Bunker BustingPublisher: Royal Marines History | Note: Supports British Westland Scouts fired SS.11 missiles at Argentine positions during the 1982 Falklands War. | Accessed: 2026-07-13Wikimedia Commons: Missile antichar Nord SS.11 Saumur.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports CC BY-SA 4.0 image provenance for a Nord SS.11 displayed at the Musée des Blindés in Saumur. | Accessed: 2026-07-11Wikimedia Commons: UH-1A Huey launches SS.11 missile c1960.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports public-domain image provenance for a U.S. Army Bell HU-1A-BF Iroquois launching a Nord SS.11 missile during tests. | Accessed: 2026-07-13Wikimedia Commons: UH-1 helicopter armed with SS.11 (in colour).jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports public-domain image provenance and M22 armament subsystem context for French-built SS-11B missiles installed on a UH-1 helicopter. | Accessed: 2026-07-13Wikimedia Commons: Swedish Navy Nord SS.11 1958 V17004.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports CC0 image provenance and Swedish Navy Robot 53 context for Nord SS.11 missiles mounted on HMS Antares. | Accessed: 2026-07-13