Anti-ship missile
Encyclopedia
Guided Missile
Guided Missile is a London based independent record label set up by Paul Kearney in 1994.Guided Missile has always focused on 'the underground', preferring to put out a steady flow of releases and developing the numerous GM events around London and beyond....
s that are designed for use against ships and large boats. Most anti-ship missiles are of the sea-skimming type, many use a combination of inertial guidance and radar homing
Radar guidance
There are 2 types of radar guidance:*Active radar guidance*Semi-active radar guidance...
. A good number of other anti-ship missiles use infrared homing
Infrared homing
Infrared homing refers to a passive missile guidance system which uses the emission from a target of electromagnetic radiation in the infrared part of the spectrum to track and follow it. Missiles which use infrared seeking are often referred to as "heat-seekers", since infrared is just below the...
to follow the heat that is emitted by a ship; it is also possible for anti-ship missiles to be guided by radio command all the way.
The first anti-ship missiles, which were developed and built by Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
, used radio command guidance, these saw some success in the Mediterranean Theater
Mediterranean Theater of Operations
The Mediterranean Theater of Operations, United States Army was originally called North African Theater of Operations and is an American term for the conflict that took place between the Allies and Axis Powers in North Africa and Italy during World War II...
in 1943 - 44, sinking or heavily damaging at least 31 ships with the Henschel Hs 293
Henschel Hs 293
The Henschel Hs 293 was a World War II German anti-ship guided missile: a radio-controlled glide bomb with a rocket engine slung underneath it. It was designed by Herbert A. Wagner.- History :...
and more than seven with the Fritz X
Fritz X
Fritz X was the most common name for a German guided anti-ship glide bomb used during World War II. Fritz X was a nickname used both by Allied and Luftwaffe personnel. Alternate names include Ruhrstahl SD 1400 X, Kramer X-1, PC 1400X or FX 1400...
, such as the Italian battleship Roma
Italian battleship Roma (1940)
Roma, named after two previous ships and the city of Rome, was the fourth Vittorio Veneto-class battleship of Italy's Regia Marina...
or the cruiser . A variant of the HS 293 had a TV transmitter on board. The bomber carrying it could then fly outside the range of naval AA guns and use TV guidance
Missile guidance
Missile guidance refers to a variety of methods of guiding a missile or a guided bomb to its intended target. The missile's target accuracy is a critical factor for its effectiveness...
to lead the missile to its target by radio control.
Many anti-ship missiles can be launched from a variety of weapons systems including surface warship
Surface ship
A surface ship is any type of naval ship that is confined to the surface of the sea. The term is primarily used to mean any modern vessel type that is not a submarine; although a "surface ship" may range in size from a cutter to an aircraft carrier, the weapons and tactics have some commonality,...
s (they can then be referred to as ship-to-ship missiles), submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
s, bomber
Bomber
A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, by dropping bombs on them, or – in recent years – by launching cruise missiles at them.-Classifications of bombers:...
s, fighter planes, patrol plane
Anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare is a branch of naval warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, or other submarines to find, track and deter, damage or destroy enemy submarines....
s, helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
s, shore batteries, land vehicles, and conceivably, even by infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
men firing shoulder-launched missiles.
A typical acronym for the phrase "anti-ship missile" is ASM, but AShM can also be used to avoid confusion with air-to-surface missile
Air-to-surface missile
An air-to-surface missile is a missile designed to be launched from military aircraft and strike ground targets on land, at sea, or both...
s, anti-submarine missile
Anti-submarine missile
An anti-submarine missile is a standoff weapon including a rocket designed to rapidly deliver an explosive warhead or homing torpedo from the launch platform to the vicinity of a submarine.-History:...
s, and anti-satellite missiles.
History
Anti-ship missiles were among the first instances of short-range guided missiles during World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in 1943 - 44. The German Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
used the Hs 293, the Fritz X, and others, all launched from its bomber
Bomber
A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, by dropping bombs on them, or – in recent years – by launching cruise missiles at them.-Classifications of bombers:...
s, to deadly effect against some Allied ships in the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
, seriously damaging ships such as the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
light cruiser
Light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
off Salerno, Italy. These all used radio command-guidance from the bombardier
Bombardier (air force)
A bombardier , in the United States Army Air Forces and United States Air Force, or a bomb aimer, in the Royal Air Force and other Commonwealth air forces, was the crewman of a bomber responsible for assisting the navigator in guiding the plane to a bombing target and releasing the aircraft's bomb...
s of the warplanes that launched them. Some of these hit and either sank or damaged a number of ships, including warships offshore of amphibious landings
Amphibious warfare
Amphibious warfare is the use of naval firepower, logistics and strategy to project military power ashore. In previous eras it stood as the primary method of delivering troops to non-contiguous enemy-held terrain...
on western Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. These radio-controlled missiles were used successfully until the Allied navies developed missile countermeasures - principally radio jamming. The Allies also developed some of their own similar radio-guided AShMs, such as the Tiny Tim
Tiny Tim (rocket)
The Tiny Tim was an American air to ground rocket used near the end of the Second World War. One source states it was built in response to a US Navy requirement for an anti-shipping rocket capable of hitting ships outside of their anti-aircraft range, with a payload capable of sinking heavy shipping...
and the SWOD-9 Bat
Bat (guided bomb)
-External links:*...
, but these saw little to no use in combat.
During the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
turned to a sea-denial strategy concentrating on submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
s, naval mine
Naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...
s and the AShM. One of the first products of the decision was the SS-N-2 Styx missile. Further products were to follow, and they were soon loaded on to the Soviet Air Force
Soviet Air Force
The Soviet Air Force, officially known in Russian as Военно-воздушные силы or Voenno-Vozdushnye Sily and often abbreviated VVS was the official designation of one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces...
's Tu-95 Bear and Tu-22 Blinder bombers, in the case of the air-launched KS-1 Komet.
In 1967, the Israeli Navy's destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
Eilat
HMS Zealous (R39)
HMS Zealous was a Z-class destroyer of the Royal Navy built in 1944 by Cammell Laird. She served during the Second World War, participating in operations in the North Sea and off the Norwegian coast, before taking part in some of the Arctic convoys...
was the first ship to be sunk by a ship-launched missile - a number of Styx missiles launched by Egyptian missile boats off the Sinai Peninsula
Sinai Peninsula
The Sinai Peninsula or Sinai is a triangular peninsula in Egypt about in area. It is situated between the Mediterranean Sea to the north, and the Red Sea to the south, and is the only part of Egyptian territory located in Asia as opposed to Africa, effectively serving as a land bridge between two...
.
In the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a military conflict between India and Pakistan. Indian, Bangladeshi and international sources consider the beginning of the war to be Operation Chengiz Khan, Pakistan's December 3, 1971 pre-emptive strike on 11 Indian airbases...
the Indian Navy conducted two raids using OSA
Osa class missile boat
The Project 205 Tsunami, more commonly known by their NATO reporting name Osa, are a class of missile boats developed for the Soviet Navy in the early 1960s. The Osas are probably the most numerous class of missile boats ever built, with over 400 vessels constructed for both the Soviet Navy and for...
1 - class missile boats employing the Styx on the Pakistani Naval base at Karachi. These raids resulted in the destruction or crippling of approximately two thirds of the Pakistani Navy. Major losses included two destroyers, a fleet oiler, an ammunition ship, approximately a dozen merchant ships and numerous smaller craft. Major shore based facilities, including fuel storage tanks and naval installations were also destroyed. The Osas returned to base without loss.
The Battle of Latakia
Battle of Latakia
The Battle of Latakia was a small but revolutionary naval battle of the Yom Kippur War, fought on 7 October 1973, between Israel and Syria. It was the first naval battle in history to see combat between surface-to-surface missile-equipped missile boats and the use of electronic deception.At the...
in 1973 (during the Yom Kippur / Ramadan War) was the scene of the world's first combat between anti-ship missile-equipped missile boats. In this battle, the Israeli Navy destroyed Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
n warships without suffering any damage, using electronic countermeasures
Electronic countermeasures
An electronic countermeasure is an electrical or electronic device designed to trick or deceive radar, sonar or other detection systems, like infrared or lasers. It may be used both offensively and defensively to deny targeting information to an enemy...
for defense. After defeating the Syrian navy the Israeli missile boats also sunk a number of Egyptian warships, again without suffering any damage in return, thus achieving total naval supremacy for the rest of the war.
Anti-ship missiles were used in the 1982 Falklands/Malvinas War. The British warship , a 4,820 ton Type 42 Destroyer
Type 42 destroyer
The Type 42 or Sheffield class, are guided missile destroyers used by the British Royal Navy and the Argentine Navy. The first ship of the class was ordered in 1968 and launched in 1971, and today three ships remain active in the Royal Navy and one in the Argentinian Navy...
, was struck by a single air-launched Exocet
Exocet
The Exocet is a French-built anti-ship missile whose various versions can be launched from surface vessels, submarines, helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. Hundreds were fired in combat during the 1980s.-Etymology:...
AShM, she later sank as a result of the damage that she sustained. The container ship Atlantic Conveyor
Atlantic Conveyor
The Atlantic Conveyor was a British merchant navy ship, registered in Liverpool, that was requisitioned during the Falklands War and sunk on 25 May 1982 after being hit by two Argentine Exocet missiles, killing 12 sailors...
was also sunk by an Exocet
Exocet
The Exocet is a French-built anti-ship missile whose various versions can be launched from surface vessels, submarines, helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. Hundreds were fired in combat during the 1980s.-Etymology:...
. HMS Glamorgan was damaged when she was struck by an MM38 missile launched from an improvised trailer-based launcher taken from the Argentine Navy
Argentine Navy
The Navy of the Argentine Republic or Armada of the Argentine Republic is the navy of Argentina. It is one of the three branches of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic, together with the Army and the Air Force....
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
ARA Comodoro Seguí by Navy technicians, but she was able to take evasive action that restricted the damage.
In 1987, a US Navy guided-missile frigate, the USS Stark, was hit by an Exocet anti-ship missile fired by an Iraqi Mirage F-1 fighter plane. Stark was damaged, but she was able steam to a friendly port for temporary repairs.
In October 1987, the Sungari, an American-owned tanker steaming under the Liberian flag and a Kuwaiti tanker steaming under the American flag, the Sea Isle City
MV Sea Isle City
MV Sea Isle City, ex-Umm al Maradem, was a Kuwait Oil Company oil tanker that reflagged during Operation Earnest Will. The ship was completed in 1981 by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Japan, as hull number 1867, for the Kuwait Oil Tanker Company....
, were hit by Iranian HY-2 missiles.
In 1988 ASMs were fired by both American and Iranian forces in Operation Praying Mantis
Operation Praying Mantis
Operation Praying Mantis was an attack on April 18, 1988, by U.S. naval forces within Iranian territorial waters in retaliation for the Iranian mining of the Persian Gulf during the Iran Iraq war and the subsequent damage to an American warship....
in the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
. During this naval battle, several Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian warships were hit by American ASMs (and by the US Navy's Standard missile
Standard missile
Standard Missile can refer to a family of several different American missiles:* RIM-66 Standard , a medium range surface-to-air missile, the successor of the RIM-24 Tartar missile...
s - SAMs which were doing double-duty in the anti-ship role). The US Navy hit the Iranian Navy light frigate IS Sahand
Iranian frigate Sahand
Iranian frigate Sahand , a British-made Vosper Mark V class frigate , was commissioned as part of a four-ship order. The ship was originally called Faramarz, named after a character in Ferdosi's Shahnameh...
with three Harpoon missiles, four AGM-123 Skipper rocket-propelled bombs, a Walleye
AGM-62 Walleye
The AGM-62 Walleye is a television-guided glide bomb which was produced by Martin Marietta and used by the United States armed forces during the 1960s. Most had a 250 lb high-explosive warhead, some had a nuclear warhead...
laser-guided bomb, and several 1,000 lb "iron bombs". Despite the large number of munitions and successful hits, the 1,540 ton IS Sahand did not sink until fire reached her ammunition magazine
Magazine (artillery)
Magazine is the name for an item or place within which ammunition is stored. It is taken from the Arabic word "makahazin" meaning "warehouse".-Ammunition storage areas:...
, causing it to detonate, blowing the frigate to bits. In the same engagement, American warships fired three Standard missiles at an Iranian Navy corvette. This corvette had such a low profile above the water that a Harpoon missile that arrived several minutes later could not lock on to it with its targeting radars.
In 2006, Lebanese Hezbollah fighters fired an AShM at the Israeli corvette INS Hanit
INS Hanit
The INS Hanit is a Sa'ar 5-class corvette of the Israeli Navy that was built by Northrop Grumman Ship Systems in 1994...
, inflicting battle damage, but this warship managed to return to Israel in one piece and under its own power. A second missile in this same salvo struck and sank an Egyptian merchant ship.
Comparison
| Name | Year | Weight | Warhead | Range | Speed (km/h) | Propulsion | launched by | Guidance | Built by | Comments |
| Fritz X Fritz X Fritz X was the most common name for a German guided anti-ship glide bomb used during World War II. Fritz X was a nickname used both by Allied and Luftwaffe personnel. Alternate names include Ruhrstahl SD 1400 X, Kramer X-1, PC 1400X or FX 1400... |
1943 | kg | 320 kg | 5 km | 1235 km/h | none | Air | manual (radio link) | DE | used in combat |
| Henschel Hs 293 Henschel Hs 293 The Henschel Hs 293 was a World War II German anti-ship guided missile: a radio-controlled glide bomb with a rocket engine slung underneath it. It was designed by Herbert A. Wagner.- History :... |
1943 | kg | 295 kg | 5.0 km | 828 km/h | Liquid-propellant, then gliding | Air | manual (radio link) | DE | used in combat |
| Kh-55 | 1984 | kg | 200 kt nuclear/410 kg conventional | 3000 km | 828 km/h | turbofan | Air | Inertial by Radar, TERCOM, Infrared | USSR/Russia | |
| Blohm & Voss BV 246 | 1943 | kg | 435 kg | 210 km | 450 km/h (280 mph) | none | Air | manual (radio link) | DE | |
| Ohka Ohka The Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka was a purpose-built, rocket powered human-guided anti-shipping kamikaze attack plane employed by Japan towards the end of World War II... |
1943 | kg | 1200 kg | 36 km | 630 km/h | Solid-propellant | Air | human kamikaze | JP | used in combat |
| Bat Bat (guided bomb) -External links:*... |
1942 | kg | 273 kg | |37 km | |260–390 km/h | None | Air | manual (radio link) | USA | used in combat |
| Boeing Harpoon Boeing Harpoon The Harpoon is an all-weather, over-the-horizon, anti-ship missile system, developed and manufactured by McDonnell Douglas . In 2004, Boeing delivered the 7,000th Harpoon unit since the weapon's introduction in 1977... |
1977 | 691 kg | 221 kg | 280 km | 864 km/h | turbojet engine | Air, surface, sub | radar (B3: midcourse update) | USA | used in combat |
| AS.34 Kormoran AS.34 Kormoran The AS.34 Kormoran is a German-produced Anti-ship missile. The Kormoran uses an inertial guidance system for the midcourse phase, switching to active radar homing during the terminal attack phase. It carries a 165 kg delay-fused warhead, designed for 90mm of penetration prior to detonation... |
1991 | 630 kg | 220 kg | 35 km | Mach 0.9 | rocket | Air | Inertial, active radar | DE | |
| Penguin | 1972 | 385 kg | 130 kg | 55+ km | high subsonic | Solid propellant | Air, surface, sub | Inertial, laser, IR | NOR | |
| AGM-65F Maverick AGM-65 Maverick The AGM-65 Maverick is an air-to-ground tactical missile designed for close-air support. It is effective against a wide range of tactical targets, including armor, air defenses, ships, ground transportation and fuel storage facilities.... |
1972 | 300 kg | 140 kg | 17 nm (30 km) | supersonic | Solid propellant | Air, | Laser, IR | USA | used in combat |
| Naval Strike Missile Naval Strike Missile The Naval Strike Missile is an anti-ship and land-attack missile developed by the Norwegian company Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace , and whose initial serial production contract was signed in June 2007. It has been chosen by the Royal Norwegian Navy for its new Fridtjof Nansen class frigates and... |
2009 | 410 kg | 125 kg | 185 km | high subsonic | turbojet and solid fuel booster | Air, surface | Inertial, GPS, terrain-reference, imaging IR, target database | NOR | |
| AGM-123 Skipper II | 1985 | 582 kg | 450 kg | 25 km | 1,100 km/h | solid-fueled | Air | laser-guided | USA | |
| Aerospatiale SS.12/AS.12 Aerospatiale SS.12/AS.12 The SS.12 and AS.12 are two variants of the same missile: SS for surface-to-surface and AS for air-to-surface. It was designed in 1955-1957 by Nord Aviation, later Aérospatiale... |
1960 | kg | 28 kg | 7 km | 370 km/h | solid-fueled | Air, surface | wire MCLOS MCLOS MCLOS is a first-generation method for guiding guided missiles.With an MCLOS missile, the operator must track the missile and the target simultaneously and guide the missile to the target. Typically the missile is steered with a joystick, and its path is observed through a periscope-type... |
FR | |
| BGM-109B Tomahawk | 1983 | 1.200 kg | 450 kg | 450 km | 880 km/h | turbofan | Air, surface, sub | GPS, TERCOM TERCOM Terrain Contour Matching, or TERCOM, is a navigation system used primarily by cruise missiles. It uses a pre-recorded contour map of the terrain that is compared to measurements made during flight by an on-board radar altimeter. A TERCOM system considerably increases the accuracy of a missile... , DSMAC |
USA | used in combat |
| Rb 04 RB 04 The RB-04 is a long-range fire-and-forget air-to-surface, anti-ship missile. The missile was known as the "RB-304" during development and early service years.... |
1955 | kg | 300 kg | 32 km | subsonic | solid propellant | Air | active radar | SWE | |
| RB 08 | 1966 | kg | kg | 70 km | subsonic | turbojet | surface | radio link active radar | SWE | |
| RBS-15 | 1985 | 800 kg | 200 kg | 200 km | subsonic | turbojet | Air, surface | inertial, GPS, radar | SWE | |
| Exocet Exocet The Exocet is a French-built anti-ship missile whose various versions can be launched from surface vessels, submarines, helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. Hundreds were fired in combat during the 1980s.-Etymology:... |
1979 | 670 kg | 165 kg | 180 km | 1134 km/h | solid propellant | Air, surface, sub | Inertial, active radar | FR | used in combat |
| Gabriel Gabriel missile Gabriel missiles, created by Israel Aircraft Industries, are a range of anti-ship missiles that use the technique of sea-skimming.- Origin :... |
1962 | 522 kg | 150 kg | 60 km | 840 km/h | solid-fuel rocket | Air, surface | active radar | IL | used in combat |
| Otomat | 1977 | 770 kg | 210 kg | 180+ km | 1116 km/h | Turbojet | Surface | Inertial, GPS, active radar | IT | |
| Martel | 1984 | 550 kg | |150 kg | 60 km max | 1070 km/h | solid propellant | Air | passive radar, video | UK/FR | |
| Sea Eagle | 1985 | kg | 230 kg | 110 km + | 1000 km/h | Turbojet | Air | Inertia, active radar | UK | |
| Sea Skua Sea Skua The Sea Skua is a British lightweight short-range air-to-surface missile designed for use from helicopters against ships. It is primarily used by the Royal Navy on the Westland Lynx helicopter, although Kuwait uses it in a shore battery and on their Umm Al Maradem fast attack craft.The British... |
1983 | 145 kg | 28 kg | 25 km | 950 km/h | solid fuel | Air | semi-active radar | UK | used in combat |
| RIM-66 Standard RIM-66 Standard The RIM-66 Standard MR is a medium range surface-to-air missile originally developed for the United States Navy . The SM-1 was developed as a replacement for the RIM-2 Terrier and RIM-24 Tartar that were deployed in the 1950s on a variety of USN ships... |
1967 | 707 kg | blast fragmentation | 74 to 167 km | 4140 km/h | solid fuel | Surface | inertial, semi-active radar | USA | used in combat |
| RIM-67 Standard RIM-67 Standard The RIM-67 Standard ER is an extended range surface-to-air missile and anti ship missile originally developed for the United States Navy... |
1981 | 1.350 kg | 62 kg | 120–185 km | 4140 km/h | solid fuel | Surface | inertial, semi-active radar | USA | |
| LRASM Long Range Anti-Ship Missile The Long Range Anti-Ship Missile is an anti-ship missile being developed by DARPA for the US Navy.Unlike current anti-ship missiles the LRASM will be capable of conducting autonomous targeting, relying on on-board targeting systems to independently acquire the target without the presence of prior,... |
2013 | liquid fuel | Surface | USA | ||||||
| KSShch (SS-N-1 SCRUBBER) | 1958 | kg | nuclear | 40 km | 1150 km/h (Mach 0.95) | liquid-fuel rocket | Surface | inertial | USSR | |
| P-15 Termit P-15 Termit The P-15 Termit is an anti-ship missile developed by the Soviet Union's Raduga design bureau in the 1950s. Its GRAU designation was 4K40, its NATO reporting name was Styx or SS-N-2. In Russian service today it also seems to be called the Rubezh... (SS-N-2 STYX) |
1958 | kg | 454 kg | 80 km | 1100 km/h | Liquid fuel rocket | Surface | active radar, IR | USSR | used in combat |
| P-5 Pyatyorka (SS-N-3 SHADDOCK) | 1959 | kg | 1000 kg | 750 km | 1000 km/h | turbojet | Surface | Inertial, mid course correction, active radar | USSR | |
| KH-22 Raduga Kh-22 The Raduga Kh-22 is a large, long-range anti-ship missile developed by the Soviet Union. It was intended for use against US Navy aircraft carriers and carrier battle groups, with either a conventional or nuclear warhead.-Development:... (AS-4 Kitchen) |
1962 | kg | conventional/nuclear 1000 kg | 400 km | 4000 km/h | liquid-fuel rocket | Air | inertial | USSR | |
| P-70 Ametist (SS-N-7 STARBRIGHT) | 1968 | kg | 500 kg | 65 km | 1050 km/h | solid rocket | sub | inertial, terminal homing | USSR | |
| Moskit Moskit The P-270 Moskit is a Russian supersonic ramjet powered cruise missile. Its GRAU designation is 3M80, and its NATO reporting name is SS-N-22 Sunburn. The missile system was designed by the Raduga Design Bureau during the 1970s as a follow up to the "SS-N-9 Siren"... (SS-N-22 SUNBURN) |
1970 | 4.500 kg | 320 kg | 120 km | 3600 km/h | ramjet | Surface, Air | active radar, IR | USSR | |
| P-120 Malakhit (SS-N-9 SIREN) | 1972 | kg | 500 kg (1,100 lb) | 110 km | Mach 0.9 | Turbojet, solid fuel | Surface | Inertial, mid course correction, active radar | USSR | used in combat |
| P-800 Oniks P-800 Oniks The P-800 Oniks for export markets; "Oniks" is onyx, and "Yakhont" is ruby or sapphire in English) is a Russian supersonic anti-ship cruise missile developed by NPO Mashinostroyeniya as a ramjet version of P-80 Zubr. Its GRAU designation is 3M55... (SS-N-26) |
1983 | 3.000 kg | 250 kg | 300 km | 3600 km/h | ramjet | Surface, Air | active-passive, radar | USSR | |
| 3M-54 Klub 3M-54 Klub The Russian 3M-54 Klub is a multi-role missile system developed by the Novator Design Bureau. Its NATO reporting name is SS-N-27. Both submarine and surface ship launched versions exist. The system is designed to accept various warheads, allowing its use against surface and subsurface naval... (SS-N-27 SIZZLER) |
1993 | 1.300-2.300 kg | 400 kg | 300 km | 735–3675 km/h | Turbojet | Surface, Sub | Inertial + Active Radar | USSR | |
| Kh-35 (AS-20 KAYAK) | 1983 | 520 kg | 145 kg | 130 km | 970 km/h | turbofan | Surface, Air | Inertial, active radar | USSR | |
| KH-15 Raduga Kh-15 The Raduga Kh-15 or RKV-15 is a Russian air-to-surface missile carried by the Tupolev Tu-22M and other bombers. Originally a standoff nuclear weapon similar to the US Air Force's AGM-69 SRAM, versions with conventional warheads have been developed.... (AS-16 Kickback) |
1988 | 1.200 kg | 150 kg conventional/nuclear | 300 km | 6200 km/h | solid-fuel rocket | Air | inertial or active radar | USSR | |
| Hae Sung-I Hae Sung SSM-700K Hae Sung I Anti-ship Missile is a ship launched anti-ship cruise missile developed by the Korea Agency for Defense Development , Nex1 Future and the Republic of Korea Navy in 2003... (SSM-700K) |
2005 | 718 kg | 300 kg | 150 km | 1013 km/h | Turbojet | Ship, Surface | Inertial, active radar | S.Korea | |
| BrahMos BrahMos BrahMos is a stealth supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft or land. It is a joint venture between Republic of India's Defence Research and Development Organisation and Russian Federation's NPO Mashinostroeyenia who have together formed BrahMos Aerospace... |
2006 | 2.500 kg (air), 3.000 kg (ground) | |300 kg | 290 km | 3675 km/h | ramjet | Ship,Surface, Air,Sub | Inertial, active radar | India/Russia | |
| DF-21D DF-21 The Dong-Feng 21 is a two-stage, solid-propellant, single-warhead medium-range ballistic missile developed by China Changfeng Mechanics and Electronics Technology Academy. Development started in the late 1960s and was completed around 1985-86, but it was not deployed until 1991... |
2010 | kg | Kinetic energy penetrator Kinetic energy penetrator A kinetic energy penetrator is a type of ammunition which, like a bullet, does not contain explosives and uses kinetic energy to penetrate the target.... |
1500+ km | 12250 km/h (Mach 10) | solid rocket | Transporter erector launcher Transporter erector launcher A transporter erector launcher is a vehicle with an integrated prime mover that can carry, elevate to firing position and launch one or more missiles. Such vehicles exist for both surface-to-air missiles and surface-to-surface missiles... , sub |
Over-the-horizon radar Over-the-horizon radar Over-the-horizon radar, or OTH , is a design concept for radar systems to allow them to detect targets at very long ranges, typically up to thousands of kilometers... , satellites, UAV Unmanned aerial vehicle An unmanned aerial vehicle , also known as a unmanned aircraft system , remotely piloted aircraft or unmanned aircraft, is a machine which functions either by the remote control of a navigator or pilot or autonomously, that is, as a self-directing entity... , active sensor |
China | Initial operating capability |
| SOM (missile) SOM (missile) SOM Cruise Missile is an air-launched high precision cruise missile, developed by TÜBİTAK-SAGE, Defence Research and Development Institute of Turkey. It was first revealed during the 100th year celebrations of Turkish Air Force at the Cigli Airbase in İzmir, on 4 June 2011... |
2006 | 600 kg | |230 kg | 185+ km | 1153 km/h | Turbojet | Air | INS / GPS, Terrain Referenced Navigation, Automatic Target Recognition, Imaging Infrared Seeker | Turkey |
Threat posed
Anti-ship missiles are the bane of the modern naval surface combatant. Unlike the ground-combatant, who has the advantage of concealment, terrain, and fundamentally, ground beneath his feet. The naval surface combatant is alone, presenting a warm target easily distinguishable from the cold water that surrounds her, with a ship or boat sailing on a flat, relatively featureless expanse of ocean, which offers concealment and shelter to none, and is (eventually) naturally deadly to human life. As this is the case, threats that would merely slow down the ground combatant—such as guided missiles—are a much greater threat to the naval combatant. Possessing a speed and an agility that naval platforms cannot forseeably match, as well as computerized "smart" guidance systems and a heavy payload of high-explosive, the modern anti-ship missile, once it has acquired its target, is an enemy that the target ship cannot usually run from, hide from, physically avoid, or absorb.Therefore, to counter the threat posed, the modern surface combatant has to either avoid being acquired by a platform possessing anti-ship missiles in the first place, has to destroy the enemy anti-ship-missile-carrying weapons system before it can launch any of its anti-ship missiles, or has to have active defense systems capable of deceiving or destroying the anti-ship missile prior to the anti-ship missile hitting its target. Modern navies have spent thousands, if not millions of man-years considering and responding to the threat of anti-ship missiles since World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The multiple, layered, computerized, active and passive defense systems employed by their surface combatants are designed with the anti-ship missile threat with certain exceptions.
The first layer of anti-missile missile defense by a modern, fully equipped Aircraft Carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
Task Force
Task force
A task force is a unit or formation established to work on a single defined task or activity. Originally introduced by the United States Navy, the term has now caught on for general usage and is a standard part of NATO terminology...
is always the long-range missile-carrying
Air-to-air missile
An air-to-air missile is a missile fired from an aircraft for the purpose of destroying another aircraft. AAMs are typically powered by one or more rocket motors, usually solid fuelled but sometimes liquid fuelled...
fighter planes of the aircraft carrier herself. This is a capability that only the US Navy has now, with its long-range, supersonic
Supersonic
Supersonic speed is a rate of travel of an object that exceeds the speed of sound . For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C this speed is approximately 343 m/s, 1,125 ft/s, 768 mph or 1,235 km/h. Speeds greater than five times the speed of sound are often...
, F/A-18 Hornet
F/A-18 Hornet
The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is a supersonic, all-weather carrier-capable multirole fighter jet, designed to dogfight and attack ground targets . Designed by McDonnell Douglas and Northrop, the F/A-18 was derived from the latter's YF-17 in the 1970s for use by the United States Navy and...
fighter planes, and formerly with the F-14 Tomcat
F-14 Tomcat
The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is a supersonic, twin-engine, two-seat, variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was developed for the United States Navy's Naval Fighter Experimental program following the collapse of the F-111B project...
fighters with their very long-range Phoenix missiles. Several of these fighters are kept on combat air patrol
Combat air patrol
Combat air patrol is a type of flying mission for fighter aircraft.A combat air patrol is an aircraft patrol provided over an objective area, over the force protected, over the critical area of a combat zone, or over an air defense area, for the purpose of intercepting and destroying hostile...
24 hours a day, seven days a week when at sea, and many more are put aloft in dangerous situations, such as during wartime or the threat of war.
These fighters patrol up to hundreds of miles away from the Carrier Task Force and they are equipped with excellent airborne radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
systems. When spotting a threatening anti-ship missile, these very fast jet fighters can approach the incoming missiles and attempt to shoot them down with their medium-range AMRAAM missile
AIM-120 AMRAAM
The AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile, or AMRAAM , is a modern beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile capable of all-weather day-and-night operations. Designed with the same form-factor as the previous generation of semi-active guided Sparrow missiles, it is a fire-and-forget...
s or their shorter-range Sidewinder missile
AIM-9 Sidewinder
The AIM-9 Sidewinder is a heat-seeking, short-range, air-to-air missile carried mostly by fighter aircraft and recently, certain gunship helicopters. The missile entered service with United States Air Force in the early 1950s, and variants and upgrades remain in active service with many air forces...
s. For the anti-ship missiles that evade these, the fighters are also capable of closing in on them and shooting at them with their 20 mm rapid-fire cannons.
However, some AShM's might "leak" past the Carrier Task Force's fighter-plane defenses, and also, many naval warships are not members of Carrier Task Forces. For these situations, there are other layers of missile defense present designed to protect warships from the anti-ship missile threat.
For example, the US Navy has developed the computerized, automatic AEGIS
Aegis combat system
The Aegis Combat System is an integrated naval weapons system developed by the Missile and Surface Radar Division of RCA, and now produced by Lockheed Martin...
anti-aircraft/ anti-cruise-missile/ anti-ballistic missile
Anti-ballistic missile
An anti-ballistic missile is a missile designed to counter ballistic missiles .A ballistic missile is used to deliver nuclear, chemical, biological or conventional warheads in a ballistic flight trajectory. The term "anti-ballistic missile" describes any antimissile system designed to counter...
naval defense system, which can simultaneously track, engage and destroy massive, though finite, quantities of incoming missiles using agile long-range and short-range surface-to-air missile
Surface-to-air missile
A surface-to-air missile or ground-to-air missile is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles...
s. Any missiles that leak through the AEGIS system can then be deceived using electronic countermeasures or decoys, or shot down by short-range anti-missile missiles, such as the Sea Sparrow
RIM-7 Sea Sparrow
RIM-7 Sea Sparrow is a US ship-borne short-range anti-aircraft and anti-missile weapon system, primarily intended for defense against anti-ship missiles...
carried by some warships or the Rolling Airframe
RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile
The RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile is a small, lightweight, infrared homing surface-to-air missile in use by the American, German, South Korean, Greek, Turkish, Saudi and Egyptian navies. It was intended originally and used primarily as a point-defense weapon against anti-ship cruise missiles...
carried by others. They can also be engaged by the warship's 5-inch, multipurpose naval guns, or by a last-ditch close-in weapon system
Close-in weapon system
A close-in weapon system , often pronounced sea-whiz, is a naval shipboard point-defense weapon for detecting and destroying at short range incoming anti-ship missiles and enemy aircraft which have penetrated the outer defenses....
(CIWS), such as the American Phalanx
Phalanx CIWS
The Phalanx CIWS is an anti-ship missile defense system. It is a close-in weapon system and was designed and manufactured by the General Dynamics Corporation, Pomona Division...
or the European Goalkeeper
Goalkeeper CIWS
Goalkeeper is a Dutch close-in weapon system introduced in 1979 and in use , which primarily defends ships against incoming missiles and ballistic shells. This system consists of an autocannon and an advanced radar which in typically six seconds detects incoming fire, determines its trajectory,...
. Russia (and the former Soviet Union), various European nations and the People's Republic of China have developed and deployed similar systems.
As effective as these naval air defense systems are, they only retain their effectiveness as long as they still have ammunition. Although expensive, these missiles still remain extremely cost-effective even when launched in their most dangerous threat modality - namely, in massive quantities intended to saturate and overwhelm their targets' defenses. Given that the cost of a single Nimitz-class supercarrier, not to mention her irreplaceable crewmen, pilots, and aircraft on board, is far in excess of even one thousand of the most modern anti-ship missiles available, a quantity that, if they could be launched en masse at one target, would surely devastate even the most well-defended aircraft carrier that any sea-faring power could conceivably deploy.
As such, navies place a high premium on defending against anti-ship missiles, as even a handful getting through ship-based defenses could badly hurt an entire Naval Task Force.
Current threats and vulnerabilities
To counter these defense systems, countries like Russia are developing or deploying very low-flying missiles (about five meters above sea level) that slowly cruise at a very low level to within a short range of their target and then, at the point when radar detection becomes inevitable, initiate a supersonic, high-agility sprint (potentially with anti-aircraft missile detection and evasion) to close the terminal distance. Missiles, such as the SS-N-27 Sizzler, that incorporate this sort of threat modality are regarded by US Navy analysts as potentially being able to penetrate current US Navy defensive systems.Recent years have seen a growing amount of attention being paid to the possibility of ballistic missiles being re-purposed or designed for an anti-ship role. Speculation has focused on the development of such missiles for use by China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
's People's Liberation Army Navy
People's Liberation Army Navy
The People's Liberation Army Navy is the naval branch of the People's Liberation Army , the military of the People's Republic of China. Until the early 1990s, the navy performed a subordinate role to the PLA Land Forces. Since then, it has undergone rapid modernisation...
. Such an Anti-ship ballistic missile
Anti-ship ballistic missile
An anti-ship ballistic missile is a military quasiballistic missile system currently in developement, of medium or intermediate range, designed to hit a warship at sea...
would approach its target extremely rapidly, making it very difficult to intercept.
Countermeasures
Countermeasures against anti-ship missiles include:- Anti-missile missileSurface-to-air missileA surface-to-air missile or ground-to-air missile is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles...
s such as the Russian Navy's 9K33 Osa (SA-N-4 Gecko), 9M330 Tor (SA-N-9 Gauntlet), 9M38 Buk (SA-N-12 Grizzly), Sea SparrowRIM-7 Sea SparrowRIM-7 Sea Sparrow is a US ship-borne short-range anti-aircraft and anti-missile weapon system, primarily intended for defense against anti-ship missiles...
, the Rolling Airframe MissileRIM-116 Rolling Airframe MissileThe RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile is a small, lightweight, infrared homing surface-to-air missile in use by the American, German, South Korean, Greek, Turkish, Saudi and Egyptian navies. It was intended originally and used primarily as a point-defense weapon against anti-ship cruise missiles...
, the StandardStandard missileStandard Missile can refer to a family of several different American missiles:* RIM-66 Standard , a medium range surface-to-air missile, the successor of the RIM-24 Tartar missile...
, or the Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
's Sea WolfSea Wolf missileSea Wolf is a naval guided missile system designed and built by BAC, later to become British Aerospace Dynamics . It is an automated point-defence weapon system designed as a final line of defence against both sea-skimming and high angle anti-ship missiles and aircraft...
or Sea DartSea Dart missileSea Dart or Guided Weapon System 30 is a British surface-to-air missile system designed by Hawker Siddeley Dynamics and built by British Aerospace from 1977...
)
On February 25, 1991, during the first Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, the Phalanx-equipped was a few miles from the and the destroyer . The ships were attacked by an Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
i Silkworm missile
Silkworm missile
The Shang Yo or SY-series , and the Hai Ying or HY-series were early Chinese anti-ship missiles. They were derived from the Soviet P-15 Termit missile.The HY-1 and HY-2 received the NATO reporting name Silkworm...
(often referred to as the Seersucker), at which Missouri fired its SRBOC
Mark 36 SRBOC
The BAE Systems Mark 36 Super Rapid Blooming Offboard Chaff is a short-range mortar that launches chaff or infrared decoys from naval vessels to foil anti-ship missiles...
chaff
Chaff (radar countermeasure)
Chaff, originally called Window by the British, and Düppel by the Second World War era German Luftwaffe , is a radar countermeasure in which aircraft or other targets spread a cloud of small, thin pieces of aluminium, metallized glass fibre or plastic, which either appears as a cluster of secondary...
. The Phalanx system on Jarrett, operating in the automatic target-acquisition mode, fixed upon Missouris chaff, releasing a burst of rounds. From this burst, four rounds hit Missouri which was two to three miles (about 5 km) from Jarrett at the time. There were no injuries. A Sea Dart missile
Sea Dart missile
Sea Dart or Guided Weapon System 30 is a British surface-to-air missile system designed by Hawker Siddeley Dynamics and built by British Aerospace from 1977...
was then launched from HMS Gloucester, which destroyed the Iraqi missile, achieving the first successful engagement of a missile by a missile during combat at sea.
- Close-in weapon systemClose-in weapon systemA close-in weapon system , often pronounced sea-whiz, is a naval shipboard point-defense weapon for detecting and destroying at short range incoming anti-ship missiles and enemy aircraft which have penetrated the outer defenses....
s (CIWS), including the Soviet-or Russian-made AK-630AK-630The AK-630 is a Soviet fully automatic naval close-in weapon system based on a six-barreled 30 mm Gatling gun. It is mounted in an enclosed automatic turret and directed by radar and television detection and tracking. The system's primary purpose is defense against anti-ship missiles and other...
or Kashtan/КаштанKashtan CIWSThe Kashtan Close-in weapon system is a modern naval air defence gun-missile system deployed by the Russian Navy.It is found on the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, Kirov class battlecruisers, Neustrashimy class, People's Liberation Army Navy Sovremenny class destroyers and Indian Talwar...
or the Phalanx and Goalkeeper. These are automated gun systems mounted on the deck of a ship that use radar to track the approaching missile, and then attempt to shoot it down during its final approach to the target. - Anti-aircraft guns such as the Mk 45 5-inch naval gun5-54 Mark 45The 5-Inch/54-caliber lightweight gun is a modern U.S. naval artillery gun mount consisting of a 5-inch L54 Mark 19 gun on the Mark 45 mount. Originally designed and built by United Defense, it is now manufactured by BAE Systems Land & Armaments after the former was acquired...
or the AK-130 - Electronic warfareElectronic warfareElectronic warfare refers to any action involving the use of the electromagnetic spectrum or directed energy to control the spectrum, attack an enemy, or impede enemy assaults via the spectrum. The purpose of electronic warfare is to deny the opponent the advantage of, and ensure friendly...
equipment (such as SLQ-32 Electronic Warfare SuiteSLQ-32 Electronic Warfare SuiteThe AN/SLQ-32 is a shipboard electronic warfare suite built by the Raytheon Company of Goleta, California. It is currently the primary electronic warfare system in use by U.S. Navy ships .-Variants:...
) - DecoyDecoyA decoy is usually a person, device or event meant as a distraction, to conceal what an individual or a group might be looking for. Decoys have been used for centuries most notably in game hunting, but also in wartime and in the committing or resolving of crimes.-Duck decoy:The term duck decoy may...
systems (such as "chaffChaff (radar countermeasure)Chaff, originally called Window by the British, and Düppel by the Second World War era German Luftwaffe , is a radar countermeasure in which aircraft or other targets spread a cloud of small, thin pieces of aluminium, metallized glass fibre or plastic, which either appears as a cluster of secondary...
" - the US Navy's RBOC system), and "flareFlare (countermeasure)A flare is an aerial infrared countermeasure to counter an infrared homing surface-to-air missile or air-to-air missile. Flares are commonly composed of a pyrotechnic composition based on magnesium or another hot-burning metal, with burning temperature equal to or hotter than engine exhaust...
s", or more active decoys such as the NulkaNulkaNulka is an Australian designed and developed active missile decoy built by an Australian/American collaboration. Used aboard warships of the United States Navy , Royal Australian Navy , United States Coast Guard , and Canadian Forces, Nulka is a rocket propelled, disposable, offboard, active decoy...
Modern stealth ship
Stealth ship
A stealth ship is a ship which employs stealth technology construction techniques in an effort to ensure that it is harder to detect by one or more of radar, visual, sonar, and infrared methods...
s – or ships that at least employ some stealth technology
Stealth technology
Stealth technology also termed LO technology is a sub-discipline of military tactics and passive electronic countermeasures, which cover a range of techniques used with personnel, aircraft, ships, submarines, and missiles, to make them less visible to radar, infrared, sonar and other detection...
– to reduce the risk of detection and to make them a harder target for the missile itself. These passive countermeasures include:
- reduction of their radar cross sectionRadar cross sectionRadar cross section is a measure of how detectable an object is with a radar. A larger RCS indicates that an object is more easily detected.An object reflects a limited amount of radar energy...
(RCS) and hence radar signature. - limit a ship's infraredInfrared signatureThe term infrared signature is used by defense scientists and the military to describe the appearance of objects to infrared sensors. An infrared signature depends on many factors, including the shape and size of the object, temperature and emissivity, reflection of external sources from the...
and acoustic signatureAcoustic signatureAcoustic signature is used to describe a combination of acoustic emissions of ships and submarines.-Contributing factors:The acoustic signature is made up of a number of individual elements...
.
Examples of these include the Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
Skjold class patrol boat
Skjold class patrol boat
The Skjold class patrol boats is a new class of superfast, large stealth missile craft, formerly known as MTBs . From 2009, the Royal Norwegian Navy officially label them as coastal corvettes because their seaworthiness is seen as comparable to corvettes. They are built at the Umoe Mandal yard...
, the Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Visby class corvette
Visby class corvette
The Visby is the latest class of corvette to be adopted by the Royal Swedish Navy after the Göteborg and the Stockholm class corvettes. The ship's design heavily emphasizes "low visibility" or stealth technology. The first ship in the class is named after Visby, the main city on the island of Gotland...
, the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Sachsen class frigate
Sachsen class frigate
The F124 Sachsen class is Germany's latest class of highly advanced air-defense frigates. The design of the Sachsen class frigate is based on that of the F123 Brandenburg class but with enhanced stealth features intended to deceive any opponent's radar and acoustic sensors and incorporate also the...
, the US Navy's Arleigh Burke
Arleigh Burke
Admiral Arleigh Albert '31-knot' Burke was an admiral of the United States Navy who distinguished himself during World War II and the Korean War, and who served as Chief of Naval Operations during the Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations.-Early life and naval career:Burke was born in Boulder,...
class destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
, their Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
eseMaritime Self-Defense Force's close counterparts in AEGIS warships, the Chinese Type 054 frigate and the Type 052C destroyer, the Indian INS Shivalik
INS Shivalik
INS Shivalik is the lead ship of her class of multi-role frigates of the Indian Navy. She was commissioned on 29th April 2010. -History:INS Shivalik is named for the Shivalik hills, a hill range in the Himalayas spanning 2500 km...
Class, and the French La Fayette class frigate
La Fayette class frigate
The La Fayette class units are light multi-mission frigates built by DCN and operated by French Marine Nationale...
.