How a fighter jet once destroyed a satellite using a high-speed kinetic interceptor

Wars & Conflicts · Published 15 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: In 1985, a modified F-15 Eagle fighter jet performed a supersonic zoom climb to launch a missile into space. The ASM-135 ASAT successfully intercepted and destroyed an orbiting solar observatory, marking a rare moment in history where a tactical aircraft demonstrated the ability to neutralize a satellite in low Earth orbit.

The ASM-135 ASAT program originated in 1978, when President Jimmy Carter directed the Air Force to develop a non-nuclear anti-satellite system. The resulting weapon was a multi-stage missile designed to be carried by F-15A fighters. Its final stage, the Miniature Homing Vehicle (MHV), was a sophisticated interceptor that used an infrared sensor to track targets. To achieve the necessary altitude, the F-15 pilot would execute a 65-degree zoom climb, releasing the missile at approximately 11,600 metres while traveling at Mach 0.934.

On 13 September 1985, pilot Wilbert D. Pearson launched an ASM-135 against the Solwind P78-1 satellite. The 14-kilogram MHV collided with the 910-kilogram target at a closing velocity of 24,000 kilometres per hour. The impact provided researchers with a unique baseline for studying hypervelocity collisions. Surprisingly, NASA scientists discovered that the debris produced was far darker than expected, likely due to plastics within the satellite vaporizing and condensing as soot upon impact. This finding forced a re-evaluation of how orbital debris is detected and calibrated.

Despite its technical success, the program faced significant political and financial hurdles. Congress imposed strict limitations on testing, and costs ballooned from an initial estimate of $500 million to $5.3 billion. Although the Air Force had planned to deploy 112 missiles, the project was ultimately canceled in 1988 due to technical challenges, testing delays, and rising expenses. Today, inert versions of the missile are preserved at the Smithsonian’s Udvar-Hazy Center and the National Museum of the United States Air Force, serving as remnants of a brief, high-stakes era in Cold War aerospace development.

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