Some of the clearest footage of a combat Javelin missile shot that has ever been recorded was just released today. You can see the arc of the missile as it conducts a top-down attack on the Russian armor.

The Javelin missile is unique in the fact that before it impacts with its intended target, the missile flies directly up, and then conducts a top-down attack against its target. Now, for the uninitiated, you might be wondering why this is the case when most other anti-tank weapons just take a straight trajectory to their target for the sake of speed. I wouldn't fault you for that, but let me explain.

The armor on the top of a tank is some of the weakest on the entire vehicle. On a majority of tanks, this is where the crew gets inside of the vehicle, and where ammunition, fuel, and additional systems are stored. All of these systems require access by the crew, which leaves the top of the tank more vulnerable than the other solid pieces of armor, in the same way that the engine compartment is also generally a weak spot in the armor.

The Javelin exploits this weakness by taking an upward trajectory before impact and striking down on the top of the tank to hit the armor where it is weakest. This video shows that trajectory in a very clear and concise fashion. If you didn't see it the first time, re-watch the video and pay special attention to the left side of the screen where you can see the missile coming in, arcing upwards, and then striking down at the top of the vehicle causing an instantaneous catastrophic kill.