The ASM-135A carried by the Eagle was the only US air-launched missile ever to destroy a satellite, and the original image showing the F-15 firing an ASAT was taken on Sep. 13, 1985.
Shared by the 412th Test Wing on Edwards Air Force Base’s Facebook page on May 4 in honor of Star Wars Day, the humorous, photoshopped lead image in this post shows the sole F-15A ASAT testbed launching a Vought ASM-135A Anti-Satellite Missile (ASAT) at the Death Star space station.
Although the F-15 never took on a fictional galactic superweapon, the ASM-135A it carried remains the only U.S. air-launched missile to have destroyed a satellite, and the original photos of the Eagle launching an ASAT, shown below, were captured on Sept. 13, 1985.
As Steve Markman and Bill Holder explain in their book One-of-a-Kind Research Aircraft, the Department of Defense has pursued the development of an anti-satellite weapon system for decades, with numerous ambitious but unsuccessful attempts dating back to the 1960s. While most of those efforts were highly complex, a 1980s program involving a fighter-launched missile ultimately demonstrated that such a system was achievable.
The ASAT program originally started as an offshoot of the Prototype Miniature Air Launched Segment (PMALS) anti-satellite initiative. As it developed further, the program’s name was changed from PMALS to the more clearly descriptive ASAT designation.
The program required modifying an F-15A so it could carry and launch a 2,700-pound, two-stage missile. Its first stage was derived from the AGM-69 Short Range Attack Missile (SRAM), while the second used a 6,000-pound-thrust Altair III Thiokol rocket motor. The system also incorporated a seeker and small rocket motors to help keep the missile on its intended trajectory.
The system underwent a single live-fire test on Sept. 13, 1985, when the F-15 climbed along an almost vertical flight path to 80,000 feet before releasing the missile. The aircraft used in the program was one of several F-15s stationed at Edwards Air Force Base for a range of test support roles. During the test, the ASAT destroyed the U.S. Solwind P-78-1 Gamma Ray Spectrometer satellite, which served as the target. Although the launch was successful, no further tests were conducted, and the one-of-a-kind ASAT system, created to counter suspected Soviet satellites, was not pursued any further.
The program was organized into two phases: modifications to the F-15A launch testbed and development of the weapon system itself.
Aircraft modifications, referred to as Group A, included installing a modified central computer, enlarged environmental control system (ECS) ducting, a reinforced ammunition bay cover, and an ammunition conveyor restraint.
Group B components related to the missile included a staged ASAT missile, a dedicated centerline pylon, a modified ammo door, and a carrier aircraft equipment (C&E) pallet.
The launch method relied on the so-called “Zoom” maneuver, in which the aircraft gave the missile a substantial speed boost before release. Launching the missile at a very high altitude also significantly reduced the aerodynamic drag it would have encountered at lower heights.
One-of-a-Kind Research Aircraft is published by Schiffer Publishing and is available to order here.
Photo by U.S. Air Force and Edwards Air Force Base Facebook page
