Designation: AIM-1 Stiletto MRAAM

I. Statistics:

• Type: (B) Air/space interception missile
• Load class: MRAAM
• Service history: Republican Navy and Army Air Corps, 2058-present
• Dimensions:

Length:	300 cm
Diameter:	30 cm
Weight:	135 kg

• Warhead: Multipurpose High Explosive Antitank (MP-HEAT)
• Yield: 30 kg
• Propulsion: Hybrid rocket engine
• Guidance: Combined IIR and active radar/home-on jam
• Max speed:
  • Standard profile: Mach 3.0
  • High speed profile: Mach 5.5
• Range:
  • Standard profile: 72 km
  • High speed profile: 20 km

II. Development:

The AIM-1 Stiletto was the premier dogfight/anti-mecha missile of the First Robotech War, and remained in use almost as long as stocks existed. These stocks lasted until the war against the Masters; few were left to equip the remaining VF-1 and VF-4 Veritechs (the main platforms equipped to fire the Stiletto at that time) against the Invid. Production materials for the Stilleto, as well as the last few missiles, were locked away in a storage yard on the moon. They sat unused, languishing until the Republican Revolution.

When the Republican Navy formed and began running sorties, they found themselves short on air interception missiles. The small stockpiles of Hammerhead and Diamondback missiles available was scarcely enough to outfit every squadron that embarked on a Republican ship. Stiletto missiles were discovered as the Navy took inventory of their assets in the wake of lunar liberation, and quickly pressed into service. The tooling and other production materials were also uncovered; small factories were enlisted to take on production of new Stiletto munitions, making the venerable old missile the chief air-to-air weapon of the Navy.

After Earth territories joined the Republic, the plants producing Hammerhead and Diamondback missiles were placed under Republican control. Production of the newer and more capable munitions began immediately, and the Stiletto production lines were shut down. Of the strikes against the Stiletto, most important was its size compared to the Diamondback. With an adapter plate and extra fusing connector installed, a Stiletto ejector rack can carry two Diamondbacks in the same space as a single Stiletto. The age of the design also counts against it; better seeker heads are installed in most modern weapons such as the Diamondback and Hammerhead, providing better target-finding performance. Significant stocks still remain, and the Stiletto will likely see service for the next few years of the war, but eventually the venerable weapon will be withdrawn, likely in mid-2066.

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