OVERVIEW: The AN/AAQ-14 is the targeting pod portion of the combined AAQ-13/AAQ-14 Low Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infrared for Night (LANTIRN) system. The AN/AAQ-14 pod allows equipped aircraft to designate targets for attack by laser-guided munitions.
DETAILS: The LANTIRN system consists of two separate but integrated pods mounted externally beneath the aircraft: the AN/AQQ-13 navigation pod and the AN/AAQ-14 targeting pod. The AN/AAQ-14 targeting pod contains a high-resolution, forward-looking infrared sensor (FLIR) and a laser designator/rangefinder housed in a stablized turret for precise delivery of laser-guided munitions. For a conventional bomb, the laser can be used to determine and feed the target range to the fire control system, simplifying target detection, recognition and attack and allowing aircraft to attack targets with precision-guided weapons on a single pass.
NOTES: Initial deliveries began in March 1987. It has been deployed on the F-16C/D, F-15E/I/S and F-14 aircraft. It has also been purchased by Belgium, Portugal, Holland, Norway and Denmark for use on their F-16s.
SOURCES: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. "LANTIRN." Accessed October 25, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LANTIRN ; F-16.net - The ultimate F-16, F-22, F-35 reference. "F-16 Armament - AN/AAQ-13 & AN/AAQ-14 LANTIRN." Accessed October 25, 2014. http://www.f-16.net/f-16_armament_article2.html ; Spy Flight. "Lockheed Martin AN/AAQ-13 ? AN/AAQ-14 LANTIRN." Accessed October 25, 2014. http://www.spyflight.co.uk/LANTIRN.htm ; Federation Of American Scientists -. "LANTIRN - Smart Weapons." Accessed October 25, 2014. http://fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/smart/lantirn.htm.
