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| AGM-158C LRASM |
According to Pentagon budget documents, the US Air Force and Navy for the first time used the AGM-158C LRASM (Long Range Anti-Ship Missile) long-range anti-ship missiles in combat conditions in the Middle East. The launches were probably carried out on board F/A-18E/F Super Hornet aircraft of the US Navy and B-1B strategic bombers of the US Air Force — to date, these are the only platforms certified for the use of LRASM.
The AGM-158C missile, developed on the basis of the AGM-158B JASSM-ER, has a range of up to 930 km and is capable of hitting naval targets in conditions of limited reconnaissance and suppression of the enemy. It is equipped with an infrared homing head, an electronic warfare system and a two-way data link, which allows it to adjust the route in real time and select priority targets.
The first information about the possible combat use of LRASM appeared in the budget reports of the US Navy for fiscal year 2025, which indicated "operational costs related to the deployment of the AGM-158C to CENTCOM AOR" — the area of responsibility of the US Central Command, including the Middle East. The Pentagon has not officially confirmed the missile's involvement in specific operations, but Reuters sources say the launches were conducted in June 2025 at facilities in the northern Persian Gulf.
This event marks the transition of LRASM from the status of a "promising weapon" to the category of a real instrument of force. Previously, the missile was successfully tested with the B-1B in 2013 and with the F/A-18E/F in 2018, but has not been used in combat conditions to date.
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