Yesterday I got one for the first time, and I threw it into a pit of raiders. Waited around a good long time, nothing happened. So then I threw another one in a more open area and decided to walk up to it, as soon as I got near it I blew up...

so umm, do these work? and if so, is just throwing/dropping them on your intended target the way to go?

I have read that they don't always work, but unfortunately I can't say why that is the case. I do get the "out of range" message sometimes with artillery flares, but you wouldn't think these missiles would have that problem.

They work but are a bit unreliable. You toss the beacon like a grenade to where you want the blast, but it seems that there needs to be clear view to the sky in about a 10-15 degree radius above/over the target. I used them but they are a bit underwhelming, exploding vehicles do more damage and have better explosive effects than the Chinese tactical nukes.