- Anti-ship missile
Anti-ship missiles are a
missile designed for use againstship s. Most anti-ship missiles are of thesea-skimming type and use a combination of inertial guidance and radar homing. These missiles can be launched from a variety of platforms including ships, aircraft (including helicopters), land vehicles and submarines.The typical acronym for the phrase is ASM, but AShM can also be used to avoid confusion with
air-to-surface missile s andanti-submarine missile s.History
Anti-ship missiles were among the first instances of short range guided missiles during the
Second World War . The German Luftwaffe usedFritz X and others to some effect against Allied shipping and sank or damaged a number of large warships successfully before the Allies devised countermeasures (principally radio jamming).During the cold war, the
USSR found that it could not match theNATO alliance in surface ships andaircraft carriers . As such, the USSR turned to a sea-denial strategy concentrating on submarines, mines, and anti-ship missiles. One of the first products of the decision was theSS-N-2 Styx missile. Further products were to follow and soon found the in the aircraft launchedKS-1 Komet carried byTu-95 Bear andTu-22 Badger bombers. In 1967 the Israeli Navy destroyer "Eilat" was sunk by a Styx missile launched by Egyptian missile boats off theSinai Peninsula .1973's
Battle of Latakia was the site of the world's first combat between anti-ship missile-equipped missile boats. In it, theIsrael i navy destroyed theSyria n ships without suffering any damage, usingECM .Anti-ship missiles were used in the 1982
Falklands War . HMS "Sheffield", a 4,820 tonType 42 Destroyer was struck by a single air-launchedExocet missile and later sank as a result of damage sustained. The container ship "Atlantic Conveyor" was also sunk by an Exocet, while HMS "Glamorgan" was damaged. "Glamorgan" was struck by an MM38 missile launched from an improvised trailer-based launcher taken from the destroyer ARA "Comodoro Seguí" byArgentine Navy technicians. [ [http://www.fuerzasnavales.com/itb.html An interview with CL (R) Ing. Julio Pérez, chief designer of Exocet trailer-based launcher es icon] ] , but was able to take avoiding manoeuvres that lessened the damage inflicted.In 1987, a
US Navy guided-missilefrigate , theUSS Stark , was hit by anExocet ASM fired by an IraqiMirage F-1 . The Stark was damaged but was able to make it to a friendly port for repair. The next year, ASMs were fired by both US and Iranian forces inOperation Praying Mantis in thePersian Gulf . During this naval battle, severalIran ian warships were hit by US ASMs (and by Standard SAMs doing double-duty in this role). Also, in October 1987, "Sungari", an American-owned tanker under the Liberian flag and a Kuwaiti tanker under the US flag, the "Sea Isle City", were hit by Iranian HY-2 missiles.During Operation Praying Mantis, the US Navy hit the Iranian light frigate IS Sahand with 3 Harpoon missiles, 4 AGM-123 Skipper rocket-propelled bombs, a Walleye laser-guided bomb, and several 1,000 lb bombs. Despite the large number of munitions and successful hits, the 1,540 ton IS Sahand did not sink until fire reached its munitions magazine, causing it to explode. [http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor/pic-prayingmantis.shtml] However, in the same engagement, US warships fired 3
RIM-66 Standard missiles at an Iranian corvette - the corvette sunk low enough in the water that a Harpoon missile arriving several minutes later had nothing to lock on to.In 2006,
Hezbollah forces fired an ASM (probably a ChineseC-802 orC-701 ) at the Israeli corvetteINS Hanit , inflicting damage but the ship made it back to Israel. A second missile in this salvo sunk an Egyptian merchant ship, as well.Comparison
Countermeasures
Countermeasures against anti-ship missiles include:
* Anti-missile missiles (such as the Sea Sparrow,SA-N-6 Grumble ,SA-N-9 Gauntlet , RAM, Standard orSea Wolf missile )
*Anti-aircraft gun s such as the Mk. 45 or theAK-130
*Close-in weapon system s (CIWS)
*Electronic warfare (such asSLQ-32 )
*Decoy systems (such as "chaff" and "flares")Modern
stealth ship s – or ships that at least employ somestealth technology – to reduce the risk of detection and to make them harder target by the missile itself. These passive countermeasures include:
* reduction of theirradar cross section (RCS) and hence radar signature.
* limit a ship'sinfra-red andacoustic signature .Examples include the Norwegian
Skjold class patrol boat s, SwedishVisby class corvette s, the USArleigh Burke class destroyers and the FrenchLa Fayette class frigate s.Notes
ee also
*
List of anti-ship missiles External links
* [http://www.ausairpower.net/Warship-Hits.html Warship Vulnerability (tabulated shipping losses)]
* [http://www.wonderland.org.nz/rnss.htm List of SSSR/Russian anti-ship missiles]
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