Pave Spike
The Pave Spike was an electro-optical laser designator pod used by F-4 Phantom II aircraft to guide laser-guided bombs in daylight and clear conditions. It combined a laser with a television camera, showing the target in a cockpit screen so the crew could aim and designate the target for bombing.
Designed to replace the bulkier Pave Knife, Pave Spike was much smaller: about 144 inches long and weighing around 420 pounds. It was mounted on the left, forward AIM-7 Sparrow station of the F-4, nestled so it did not slow the jet or take up a weapon pylon. The pod’s nose had a clear dome through which the TV camera viewed the target, and the entire nose could pivot to look around.
By 1976, the 414th Fighter Weapons Squadron at Nellis Air Force Base was training with the Pave Spike and learning how to operate it across its capabilities. The system offered three ways to acquire a target.
- 12-acquire (12-vis): The pod looked straight ahead, aligned with the pilot’s gunsight. The WSO saw the target in the TV image and, after taking control of the pod, tracked it with the radar control handle.
- 9-acquire (9-vis): The pod looked to the left (9 o’clock) to find targets on that side before the attack.
- Weapons Release Computer System (WRCS) acquire: During mission planning, crews measured a point from which to start the final approach. As they flew, the WRCS could command the pod to look at the target from the premeasured distance.
These modes were especially useful for low-altitude runs where pilots would pop up to drop the bombs.
In use, crews planned to have the target offset to the left. They would fly over a known point, apply WRCS offsets to steer the pod toward the target, and then, at a set distance, the aircraft could climb and scan with the left side in view. If the WRCS acquisition worked, the WSO would see the target; if not, the pilot could switch to 9-acquire or 12-acquire and try again. For low-altitude loft attacks, a typical tactic was a 10-degree climb from about 2 miles out, with the bomb released at that distance after the target was lasered, then the aircraft immediately turned away while the WSO continued lasing until impact.
The Pave Spike was demonstrated in 1978 with the 500-pound GBU-12 Paveway II at low altitude, showing successful use against a fuel tank during a precision-firepower event. By the late 1970s, Pave Spike tactics had become a standard part of F-4 operations, but the system worked best in daylight and clear weather; it was limited in night or poor visibility.
About 156 examples of the AN/ASQ-153 were produced and used from 1974 through 1989. In 1979, the Royal Air Force adopted a simplified AN/AVQ-23E version for their Blackburn Buccaneers, and twelve aircraft later deployed toSaudi Arabia to perform laser designation for other aircraft during the Gulf War, with some eventually carrying laser-designated bombs themselves.
Today, Pave Spike is obsolete and has been phased out in favor of newer systems like LANTIRN and AN/ASQ-228 ATFLIR. The National Museum of the United States Air Force preserves a Pave Spike in its collection.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 16:16 (CET).