In 1962, the U.S. Navy issued a requirement for a long-range high-precision air-to-surface missile. The missile, named the AGM-53A Condor, was to use a television guidance system with a data link to the launching aircraft similar to the system of the then projected AGM-62 Walleye

AGM-62 Walleye

The AGM-62 Walleye is a television-guided glide bomb which was produced by Martin Marietta and used by the United States armed forces during the 1960s. Most had a 250 lb high-explosive warhead, some had a nuclear warhead...

.

Development history

Because of numerous problems in the development phase, the first flight of an XAGM-53A missile did not occur before March 1970. The AGM-53 program was cancelled in March 1976. Its long range and potentially high precision made the Condor a very powerful weapon, but it was much more expensive than contemporary tactical air-to-ground weapons. The secure data link contributed a significant portion to total missile cost, and it certainly didn't help that this link was still somewhat unreliable.

Description

The Condor was to be a long-range missile to be used for high-precision stand-off attacks. The missile was launched by the strike aircraft from a distance of up to 60 NM to the general target area. When the AGM-53 approached the expected target position, the image of the TV camera in the missile's nose was transmitted back to the operator in the launching aircraft. The operator could switch between wide and narrow field-of-view images to find a suitable target.

As soon as a target for the missile had been selected, the operator could either fly the missile manually until impact, or lock the Condor on the target and rely on the missile's capability to home on the final aiming point. The Condor's linear shaped charge

Shaped charge

A shaped charge is an explosive charge shaped to focus the effect of the explosive's energy. Various types are used to cut and form metal, to initiate nuclear weapons, to penetrate armor, and in the oil and gas industry...

 warhead detonated on impact.

A variant of the Condor was anticipated to carry the W73

W73

The W73 was an American nuclear warhead for the AGM-53 Condor air to surface missile.The W73 was cancelled in 1970 in favor of a purely conventional warhead for the Condor. None were produced....

 nuclear warhead, a derivative of the B61

B61 Family

The B61 Family is a series of thermonuclear bombs and thermonuclear warheads based on the B61 nuclear bomb.-Initial development:The B61 bomb was developed by Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory starting in 1960...

nuclear bomb. Details on the W73 are poorly documented, and it never entered production or service.