Havoc Spear small cruise missile completes third round of trials

Air Force Special Operations Command said the AGM-190A Havoc Spear was put through a further combat evaluation this spring. The trial was held inside Africa Command's area of responsibility and the missile was fired from an AFSOC aircraft in what the command described as a test configuration.

AFSOC announced the evaluation on 14 September 2026. In its account, the test met the requirements for the weapon to be fielded more widely, covering both special operations and conventional aircraft.

The command did not identify the aircraft used. Video material released alongside the announcement shows a C-130 variant. Whether the missile carried a live warhead was also not disclosed.

The footage captures a flash and an explosion-like effect at the moment of impact in one of three B-roll clips.

This was the third round of testing to become publicly known, following captive carry work in December 2023 and guided flight tests in November 2024. Leidos said on 26 February 2026 that the weapon had been given the AGM-190A designation; before that it was called the Black Arrow small cruise missile.

According to AFSOC, the missile was developed by US Special Operations Command with Leidos under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement, an arrangement the command said allowed work to proceed more quickly than a standard acquisition process. The design is modular, intended to make upgrades and adaptation to new requirements quicker. The weapon sits within a broader US military interest in lower-cost stand-off munitions that can be developed and modified at short notice.