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I have always wondered, wouldn't it be pretty easy to create a missile that follows a radar wave to it's source? A fighter plane could use this very missile to

• belter 5y ago
  Already exists. Meet the AGM-88: https://fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/smart/agm-88.htm https://fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/smart/agm-88.htm
  • kevin_thibedeau 5y ago
    The British ALARM is more interesting as it has a loiter mode where it can fly up, deploy a parachute, and wait for a radar site to turn on. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ALARM https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ALARM
    • imtringued 5y ago
      It's basically a flying naval mine with an active tracking mode.
• kop316 5y ago
  Yep! https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/AGM-88_HARM https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/AGM-88_HARM https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Weasel https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Weasel
• byteofbits 5y ago
  This is essentially how HARM (Anti-Radiation) missiles work [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AGM-88_HARM https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AGM-88_HARM]
• mardifoufs 5y ago
  It already exists! Also works against ground radar. It's actually one of the best ways to clean up enemy air defenses before an invasion https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-radiation_missile https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-radiation_missile
• scottLobster 5y ago
  Yes, term you're looking for is anti-radiarion missiles, they've been around for a little while https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-radiation_missile?wprov=sfla1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-radiation_missile?wprov=s...
• muro 5y ago
  Some loitering ammunition also do that. It waits in the area until SAM battery turns on their radar, then it knows its position and destroys it.
• Buttons840 5y ago
  After going down the rabbit hole of combat flight simulators (Falcon BMS), I learned about Suppression of Enemy Air Defense missions. Fly to a spot, fire off a few radar seeking missiles at an area, the missiles are programmed to hit any radar they detect. The missiles go in a straight line for several minutes watching for radar, and will quickly fly towards any detected radar and blow it up. So, to support nearby missions you just put out a few of these missiles over and area and then nobody dares turn on their ground radar.
  • skhr0680 5y ago
    I recall Serbia having some success baiting anti-radiation missiles with tactical microwave ovens
    • varjag 5y ago
      It's a successful urban legend.
      • abandonliberty 5y ago
        Like carrots being good for your eyes.
        • des1nderlase 5y ago
          This statement is quite on spot, as carrots were used to cover radar tech. https://www.livescience.com/38861-carrots-eyesight-myth-origins.html https://www.livescience.com/38861-carrots-eyesight-myth-orig...
  • magicsmoke 5y ago
    Seems like this could be mitigated by having a network of radar emitters that periodically turn on and off while sharing targeting information through the network to non-emitting missile launchers. Maybe the emitters could also be mobile and drive away to deter inertial-based targeting. Seems almost like a shoot-and-scoot artillery system except with radar instead of rounds. The concept would also work by networking the radars of a flight of fighters together so none of them would have to continuously transmit while also allowing fighters to illuminate targets from multiple angles.
• stouset 5y ago
  This is the principle behind anti-radiation missiles like the AGM-88 HARM. It’s impractical for A2A combat because in this situation, the enemy missile is already fired at you and all else being equal will hit before yours does. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/AGM-88_HARM https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/AGM-88_HARM