Tactical ballistic missile
- Tactical ballistic missile
A tactical ballistic missile is a ballistic missile designed for short-range battlefield use. Typically range is less than 300 km. Tactical ballistic missiles are usually mobile to ensure survivability and quick deployment, as well as carrying a variety of warheads to target enemy facilities, assembly areas, artillery, and other targets behind the front lines. Warheads can include conventional high explosive, chemical/biological and nuclear warheads. Typically tactical nuclear weapons are limited in their total yield compared to strategic rockets.
Tactical ballistic missiles fill the gap between conventional rocket artillery and longer-range theatre ballistic missiles. Tactical missiles can carry heavy payloads deep behind enemy lines in comparison to rockets or tube artillery, while having better mobility and less expense than the more strategic theatre missiles. Additionally, due to their mobility, tactical missiles are better suited to responding to developments on the battlefield.
For many nations, tactical missiles represent the upper limit of their land-based military equipment. They can provide a powerful weapon for a very economical price, and in some cases are sought to help level the field against opponents who are clearly superior in other areas of military technology. Currently, ballistic missile technology is relatively accessible to nations that may find other military technology beyond easy reach.
Ballistic missiles are still difficult to defeat on the battlefield. Newer air defense systems have improved ability to intercept tactical missiles, but still can not reliably protect assets against ballistic missile threats. This allows a moderate force of missiles to threaten a superior enemy by penetrating their air defenses better than with conventional aircraft, while providing a deeper strike than conventional artillery.
See also
* List of missiles
Wikimedia Foundation.
2010.
Look at other dictionaries:
Ballistic missile — Diagram of V 2, the first ballistic missile. A ballistic missile is a missile that follows a sub orbital ballistic flightpath with the objective of delivering one or more warheads to a predetermined target. The missile is only guided during the… … Wikipedia
Anti-ballistic missile — An anti ballistic missile (ABM) is a missile designed to counter ballistic missiles (a missile for missile defense). A ballistic missile is used to deliver nuclear, chemical, biological or conventional warheads in a ballistic flight trajectory.… … Wikipedia
Theatre ballistic missile — A theatre ballistic missile is any ballistic missile with a range between 300 and 3,500 km, used against targets in theatre . The term is a relatively new one, encompassing the former categories of short range ballistic missile, medium range… … Wikipedia
Ballistic Missile Defense System — Start eines Prototypen des Ground Based Interceptors auf einer PLV Rakete … Deutsch Wikipedia
Ballistic missile submarine — The French SNLE Le Redoutable at Cité de la Mer museum A ballistic missile submarine is a submarine equipped to launch ballistic missiles (SLBMs). Contents … Wikipedia
Commission to Assess the Ballistic Missile Threat to the United States — The Commission to Assess the Ballistic Missile Threat to the United States, also called the Rumsfeld Commission,[1] was an independent commission formed by the US Congress to evaluate the ballistic missile threat posed to the United States. The… … Wikipedia
Indian Ballistic Missile Defense Program — The Indian Ballistic Missile Defense Program is an initiative to develop and deploy a multi layered Ballistic missile defense system to protect India from missile attacks. [http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/04/asia/AS GEN India Missile… … Wikipedia
Anti-ballistic missile defense countermeasures — are tactical or strategic actions taken by an attacker to overwhelm, destroy, or evade anti ballistic missile defenses.Anti ballistic missile (ABM) defense countermeasures can be categorized in a variety of ways, such as whether something is… … Wikipedia
Fajr-3 ballistic missile — Infobox Weapon is missile=yes name = Fajr 3 type = Strategic MRBM vehicle range = Unknown (estimated 2500) filling = Three yield = engine = liquid guidance = cep = speed = length = diameter = weight = payload capacity = manufacturer = Iran unit… … Wikipedia
Missile defense — The Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System. A RIM 161 Standard Missile 3 anti ballistic missile is launched from USS Shiloh, a US Navy Ticonderoga class cruiser … Wikipedia
