Standard missile

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RIM-66 Standard missile (SM-2 MR) on a Mk. 26 launcher aboard the USS Ticonderoga (CG-47)

The Standard Missile is a type of surface-to-air missile (SAM) originally developed for the United States Navy (USN). The SM-1 was developed as a replacement for the RIM-2 Terrier and RIM-24 Tartar systems deployed in the 1950s on a variety of USN ships. The RIM-66A/B Standard MR, (SM-1MR Block I to V) was used during the Vietnam War. It used the same fuselage as the earlier Tartar, for easier use with existing launchers and magazines. The RIM-66C/D Standard MR (SM-2MR Block I), was developed in the 1970s and was a key part of the Aegis combat system and New Threat Upgrade (NTU). In the early 1980s, the missile was deployed via Vertical Launching System (VLS) aboard the USS Bunker Hill (CG-52), the first US Navy ship to deploy a vertical launcher. VLS is now the predominate launcher used with the Standard missile in the US Navy aboard Ticonderoga class cruisers and Arleigh Burke class destroyers. The standard missile was designed and integrated by the Standard Missile Company (SMCo), jointly owned by Hughes Missile Systems Company and Raytheon Company. SMCo is the prime contractor for Standard Missile.^[1] The SM-1 and SM-2 were continuously upgraded through Blocks (see below).

1 Variations
2 RIM-66 SM-2 Medium Range Block III/IIIA/IIIB
3 RIM-67 SM-2 Extended Range
4 RIM-156 SM-2 Extended Range Block IV
5 RIM-161 Standard Missile 3 (SM-3)
6 References
7 Further reading
8 External links

[edit] Variations

USS Thach (FFG-43) launches a RIM-66 SM-1MR from its Mk 13 Missile Launcher

Versions of the Standard missile were used as the basis for the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System. Two were initially developed, the "Navy Area" and "Navy Theater-Wide". The "Navy Area" system was cancelled by the United States Department of Defense due to delays in its development and cost-growth. "Navy Theater-Wide" continues under another name as part of the Missile Defense Agency's family of systems. The Navy has tested the RIM-156 Standard SM-2ER Block IV and RIM-161 Standard SM-3 for ballistic missile defense usage.

The Standard can also be used against ships, either at line-of-sight range using its semi-active homing mode, or over the horizon using inertial guidance and terminal infrared homing.^[2] At one time it was planned to mount a W81 nuclear warhead, but this development was later shelved. The RGM-66 Standard ARM was a ship launched Anti-radiation missile used in the 1970s.

[edit] RIM-66 SM-2 Medium Range Block III/IIIA/IIIB

An un-finned RIM-67 SM2-ER sits in the magazine of the USS Mahan (DLG-11) prior to a missile launch.

General characteristics^[3]

Primary function: surface-to-air
Contractor: Raytheon and others
Power plant: dual thrust, solid fuel rocket
Length: 15 ft., 6 in. (4.72 m)
Weight: SM-2 – 1,558 lb (708 kg)
Diameter: 13.5 in. (343 mm)
Wing span: 3 ft., 6 in. (1.08 m)
Range: 40 to 90 nautical miles (74 to 167 km)
Guidance system: semi-active radar homing (inertial guidance with terminal IR additionally fitted in Block IIIB)
Warhead: radar and contact fuze, blast fragmentation warhead
Date deployed: 1981 (SM-2MR)

[edit] RIM-67 SM-2 Extended Range

The RIM-67 SM-2ER was the Navy's replacement for RIM-2 Terrier missile. Ships carrying the SM-2 ER were often still called Terrier ships even after the SM-2ER. Because the RIM-67's first stage booster was very long, it could not fit into the Mk 41 VLS system, and thus could not be used with the Aegis weapon system. The SM-2 Block IV with the Mk 72 booster was developed to compensate for the lack of a long range SM for the CG 47 class Aegis cruisers.

[edit] RIM-156 SM-2 Extended Range Block IV

General characteristics^[3]

Primary function: fleet and extended area air defense
Contractor: Raytheon and others
Power plant: two-staged solid-fueled rockets
Length: 21 ft., 6 in. (6.55 m) with booster
Weight: 3,225 lb (1466 kg)
Diameter: 21 in. (533 mm) with booster
Wing Span: 3 ft., 6 in. (1.08 m)
Range: 100 to 200 nautical miles (190 to 370 km)
Guidance system: semi-active radar homing. Inertial/command guidance with terminal IR homing in Block IVa
Warhead: radar and contact fuze, blast-fragment warhead
Date deployed: 1998