Navy surface warships that carry them. The missile, which General Dynamics first designed in the s, was one of the first truly effective cruise missiles. Most missiles are designed to sprint to their targets; Tomahawk is designed to run a marathon. Engineers chose a liquid fuel-sipping turbojet engine because it enabled greater range than a rocket engine of roughly the same size.
A slower speed also makes low altitude flight more viable, which in turn makes the missile much more difficult to detect by radar. Today, most advanced countries operate similar low-flying subsonic missiles, including Russia, China, France, and South Korea. Despite its age, the Tomahawk has stayed in the game through a series of progressive upgrades. The original Block I version included both nuclear-tipped and anti-ship versions of the missile.
Block II introduced land attack capabilities, like those demonstrated during the Gulf War, with missiles striking Iraqi Air Force airfields and daytime targets across the Iraqi capital of Baghdad. Block IV Tomahawks added more features, including the ability to be re-routed to new targets in mid-flight. Block IV missiles also feature a camera and datalink, allowing a missile to send imagery back to friendly forces. The missile has a cruising speed of mph kph.
The hallmark of a cruise missile is its incredible accuracy. A common statement made about the cruise missile is, "It can fly 1, miles and hit a target the size of a single-car garage.
The IGS is a standard acceleration-based system that can roughly keep track of where the missile is located based on the accelerations it detects in the missile's motion click here for a good introduction. Tercom uses an on-board 3-D database of the terrain the missile will be flying over. The Tercom system "sees" the terrain it is flying over using its radar system and matches this to the 3-D map stored in memory.
The Tercom system is responsible for a cruise missile's ability to "hug the ground" during flight. Once it is close to the target, the missile switches to a "terminal guidance system" to choose the point of impact.
The point of impact could be pre-programmed by the GPS or Tercom system. The DSMAC system uses a camera and an image correlator to find the target, and is especially useful if the target is moving.
David B. Larter was the naval warfare reporter for Defense News. By David B. Dec 14, The US Navy is moving to put more ship-killer missiles on submarines US Navy submarines will soon be able to kill ships at a range of 1, miles. About David B. More In Naval.
Singapore tries to normalize military training schedule after pandemic disruption Efforts include an integrated sense-and-strike exercise in Idaho that saw the debut of an improved artificial intelligence-enabled C2 system. Pakistan receives new Chinese-made frigate. Metallurgist admits faking steel-test results for Navy subs Elaine Marie Thomas pleaded guilty to fraud Monday. The Tomahawk can carry either conventional or nuclear payloads, though policy decisions have phased out their nuclear role.
Photo: U. Source: Jonathan Sunderman, U. Navy A Tomahawk missile in flight. Navy Tomahawk Development The U. Navy began its development of sea-launched cruise missiles in It uses tailored guidance systems to maneuver while at such low elevation.
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