April 14, 2026:
Recently American defense contractors successfully launched a Hellfire missile from the new Grizzly launcher in a three-meter high cargo container. The Grizzly system is based on the M299 missile launchers, which can be configured several ways to launch both the Hellfire and Joint Air-to-Ground/JAG Missile. Hellfire missiles can track targets autonomously and are used by the Army, Navy and numerous foreign nations using nearly 20 platforms across air, land and sea.
The first five tests occurred six months after research and development, through internal Lockheed Martin investment, demonstrating the ability to quickly deliver a mobile and versatile launcher capability to defeat evolving threats. Built out of low-cost commercially available materials, the containerized launcher can be easily lifted and transported by a wide variety of commercial freight and transport equipment, including trucks, aircraft and ships. The development comes as the Navy is seeking the development of containerized payloads, which can potentially be placed on unmanned surface vessels to increase firepower and flexibility at sea.
The Hellfire II weighs 48 kg carries a 9 kg warhead and has a range of 8,000 meters. The Hellfire is fast, travelling at about 450 meters a second, meaning that it can hit a target at maximum range in less than 20 seconds. Hellfire is popular for use in urban areas because its small warhead has only about a kilogram of explosives and reduces casualties among nearby civilians. The missile is accurate enough to be sent through a window because of its laser guidance.
The U.S. Army uses M299 helicopter missile racks. Introduced in 1994, each one of these racks holds four Hellfire missiles, or sixteen 70mm DAGR guided markets which are guided versions of the venerable 70mm unguided rockets. Alternatively, each rack can hold eight DAGRs and two Hellfires. The racks can be used on the AH-64, AH-1Z, Tiger or the SH-60B helicopters. Each rack weighs 45 kg. Loaded with four Hellfires, the rack weighs 167 kg. Attack helicopters usually carry two of these racks.