| SOM cruise missile | |
|---|---|
SOM missile under the wing of the F-16 Block 40, exhibited on 100th anniversary of Turkish Air Force |
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| Type | Cruise missile Anti-ship missile |
| Place of origin | Turkey |
| Service history | |
| In service | 2012 (exp.) |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | TÜBİTAK-SAGE |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 600 kilograms (1,323 lb) |
| Length | 3,657 millimetres (12.0 ft)[1] |
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| Warhead | 230 kilograms (507 lb) SOM-A: High Explosive SOM-B1: High Explosive SOM-B2: Dual-stage penetrator |
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| Engine | Microturbo TRI 40 2.5-3.3 kN |
| Wingspan | 2,600 millimetres (8.53 ft) |
| Operational range |
over 185 kilometres (100 nmi) |
| Flight altitude | Terrain hugging Sea skimming |
| Speed | 623 knots (0.8 Mach ) |
| Guidance system |
INS / GPS Terrain Referenced Navigation Automatic Target Recognition Imaging Infrared Seeker |
| Launch platform |
F-16 Fighting Falcon F-4 Phantom II |
SOM Cruise Missile (Turkish: Stand-off Mühimmat Seyir Füzesi) 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 the Turkish Air Force at the Çiğli Air Base in İzmir, on 4 June 2011. Developed since 2006, the SOM cruise missile is Turkey's first domestic solution for destroying both stationary and moving targets at a stand-off distance of over 180 kilometers.[2][3]
Contents |
The SOM stand-off cruise missile is a family of launch and leave precision strike weapons against both land or sea targets. It uses GPS as its primary mode of guidance complemented by an advanced Inertial Navigation System and a radar-based Terrain Referenced Navigation system, allowing the missile to skim the terrain during its flight in order to evade local defence systems. According to the developer, it features advanced geometry and aerodynamics over similar missile systems, as well as lightweight composite components that minimize the radar cross-section of the missile. A terminal stage infrared imager detects the individual target by matching its signature with a pre-loaded database of similar targets allowing for precision strike. It can also be used to provide image-based midcourse navigation by taking snapshots of waypoints and comparing them against predicted position to update the navigation system. By this way, if GPS capability is denied or degraded, the missile can follow its waypoints using infrared based terrain updates. The missile includes a two-way datalink that makes possible to change the task in flight.[2][4][5]
Basic design of the missile incorporates dedicated fuselage that fits in the internal bays of the Joint Strike Fighter.[5]
It is intended to achieve high accuracy in striking military targets like command and control facilities, SAM sites, parked aircraft and surface ships.[6]
According to the TUBITAK-SAGE officials, the initial demonstration flights of the prototypes were completed successfully. The missile made its first guided flight on 9 August 2011 over the Black Sea. Covering more than 100 nautical miles using GPS/INS guidance, the missile successfully hit its target with high accuracy. It is planned to assess the design aspects of the missile by conducting about 30 test flights. The delivery of a first batch of missiles to the Turkish Air Force will take place by the end of 2011, following more complicated live firing tests planned for the rest of the year.[2][4][5]
TUBITAK-SAGE develops the missile in three variants:[7]
SOM A: Basic Air Force variant that is designed to engage a military target in simple strike mode by using the coordinates of the given target at the terminal stage.
SOM B Block I: Advanced Air Force variant that engages a military target in precision strike mode using imaging infrared matching at the terminal stage.
SOM B Block II: Special Air Force variant featuring a dual-stage penetrator warhead which is designed to engage strategic and well-protected assets in precision strike mode.
SOM B Block I/II variants feature a data-link for man-in-the-loop update of a waypoint.
Certification efforts are in progress to enable the SOM missile for integration with Turkish Air Force F-35 Lightning II.[2][5]
The SOM missile is also one of the two official candidate cruise missiles, besides the Joint Strike Missile developed by Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace of Norway, to be integrated onto the F-35 Lightning II.
The SOM Missile is the first non-US made weapon to use the Universal Armaments Interface (UAI). Accordingly, the SOM missile can be integrated onto any platform which uses UAI.