Standoff Land Attack Missile
Encyclopedia
Cruise missile
A cruise missile is a guided missile that carries an explosive payload and is propelled, usually by a jet engine, towards a land-based or sea-based target. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large warhead over long distances with high accuracy...
which grew out of 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...
's 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...
anti-ship missile
Anti-ship missile
Anti-ship missiles are guided missiles 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...
in the 1970s.
Original SLAM
It is now difficult to see any visual similarities between the SLAM-ER and the Harpoon. However, the original SLAM very closely resembled the Harpoon because it shared most of its components with the Harpoon, despite being somewhat longer. This helped reduce development costs and allowed the system to be developed in 48 months. The original SLAM was developed at extremely short notice during the Gulf WarGulf 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...
to meet emergency requirements. A number of SLAMs were successfully fired at Iraqi
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....
coastal targets during the Gulf War. In fact, it was successfully employed by F/A-18 and A-6 aircrews in Desert Storm even before operational testing had begun. The longer length of the original SLAM compared to Harpoon meant that it flew in a slightly nose-up attitude while approaching the target.
Current SLAM
In its current incarnation, the SLAM-ER (Expanded Response), it is capable of attacking land and sea targets automatically, at long-range (155+ miles/250+ km), and can also be controlled remotely from the air. It relies on military-grade GPSGlobal Positioning System
The Global Positioning System is a space-based global navigation satellite system that provides location and time information in all weather, anywhere on or near the Earth, where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites...
and infrared imaging for navigation. It can strike both moving and stationary targets. It can be redirected to another target after launch if the original target has already been destroyed, or is no longer a priority. SLAM-ER attained IOC
Initial operating capability
Initial operating capability or Initial operational capability is the state achieved when a capability is available in its minimum usefully deployable form. The term is often used in government or military procurement....
in June 2000. It is extremely accurate, with the best CEP
Circular error probable
In the military science of ballistics, circular error probable is an intuitive measure of a weapon system's precision...
in the U.S. Navy.
General Electric
General Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
provides an Automatic Target Recognition
Automatic Target Recognition
Automatic target recognition , is the ability for an algorithm or device to recognize targets or objects based on data obtained from sensors....
Unit (ATRU) which processes pre-launch and post-launch targeting data, allows high speed video comparison, and enables the SLAM-ER to be used in a true "fire and forget" manner. It also includes a "man-in-the-loop" mode, where the pilot/controller can designate the point of impact precisely, even if the target has no distinguishing infrared signature
Infrared signature
The 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...
. It can be launched and controlled by F-15, F/A-18, P-3 Orion and S-3 Viking.
The cost of a single SLAM-ER is $500,000.
Specifications
- Primary Role: Long range, air-launched precision land and sea attack cruise missile.
- Contractor: BoeingBoeingThe Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...
. - Service History: 2000-present (SLAM-ER).
- Unit Cost: $500,000.
- Propulsion: TeledyneTeledyneTeledyne Technologies Incorporated is an industrial conglomerate primarily based in the United States but with global operations. It was founded in 1960, as Teledyne, Inc., by Henry Singleton and George Kozmetsky....
turbojet. Thrust is greater than 600 pounds. - Length: 172 inches (4.4 m).
- Diameter: 13.5 inches (34.3 cm).
- Wingspan: 86 inches (2.2 m).
- Weight: 1,488 pounds (674.5 kg).
- Speed: High Subsonic.
- Range: Over-the-horizon, in excess of 135 nmiNautical mileThe nautical mile is a unit of length that is about one minute of arc of latitude along any meridian, but is approximately one minute of arc of longitude only at the equator...
/250 km. - Guidance System: Ring Laser GyroRing laser gyroscopeA ring laser gyroscope consists of a ring laser having two counter-propagating modes over the same path in order to detect rotation. It operates on the principle of the Sagnac effect which shifts the nulls of the internal standing wave pattern in response to angular rotation...
Inertial Navigation System (INS)Inertial navigation systemAn inertial navigation system is a navigation aid that uses a computer, motion sensors and rotation sensors to continuously calculate via dead reckoning the position, orientation, and velocity of a moving object without the need for external references...
with multi-channel GPS; infrared seeker for terminal guidance with data link from the controlling aircraft. Upgraded missiles incorporate Automatic Target Acquisition (ATA).
Variants
- AGM-84E — Basic SLAM, developed from AGM-84 Harpoon.
- AGM-84H — SLAM-ER.
- AGM-84K — Internally improved AGM-84H; currently in service.
See also
- Automatic target recognitionAutomatic Target RecognitionAutomatic target recognition , is the ability for an algorithm or device to recognize targets or objects based on data obtained from sensors....
- BGM-109 Tomahawk Cruise Missile
- AGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missile
- 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...
Turkish equivalent of SLAM-ER
External links
- Boeing (McDonnell-Douglas) AGM/RGM/UGM-84 Harpoon, Designation Systems
- spec sheet, TimeTime (magazine)Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
- SLAM-ER, BoeingBoeingThe Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...