Anti-ship missiles are guided missiles that are designed for use against ships and large boats. Most anti-ship missiles are of the sea-skimming type, many use a combination of inertial guidance and radar homing. A good number of other anti-ship missiles use infrared homing to follow the heat that is emitted by a ship; it is also possible for anti-ship missiles to be guided by radio command all the way.
The first anti-ship missiles, which were developed and built by Nazi Germany, used radio command guidance, these saw some success in the Mediterranean Theater in 1943 - 44, sinking or heavily damaging at least 31 ships with the Henschel Hs 293 and more than seven with the Fritz X, such as the Italian battleship Roma or the cruiser USS Savannah. A variant of the HS 293 had a TV transmitter on board. The bomber carrying it could then fly outside the range of naval AA guns and use TV guidance to lead the missile to its target by radio control.
Many anti-ship missiles can be launched from a variety of weapons systems including surface warships (they can then be referred to as ship-to-ship missiles), submarines, bombers, fighter planes, patrol planes, helicopters, shore batteries, land vehicles, and conceivably, even by infantrymen firing shoulder-launched missiles.
A typical acronym for the phrase "anti-ship missile" is ASM, but AShM can also be used to avoid confusion with air-to-surface missiles, anti-submarine missiles, and anti-satellite missiles.
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Anti-ship missiles were among the first instances of short-range guided missiles during World War II in 1943 - 44. The German Luftwaffe used the Hs 293, the Fritz X, and others, all launched from its bombers, to deadly effect against some Allied ships in the Mediterranean Sea, seriously damaging ships such as the United States Navy light cruiser USS Phoenix (CL-46) off Salerno, Italy. These all used radio command-guidance from the bombardiers of the warplanes that launched them. Some of these hit and either sank or damaged a number of ships, including warships offshore of amphibious landings on western Italy. These radio-controlled missiles were used successfully until the Allied navies developed missile countermeasures - principally radio jamming. The Allies also developed some of their own similar radio-guided AShMs, such as the Tiny Tim and the SWOD-9 Bat, but these saw little to no use in combat.
During the Cold War, the Soviet Union turned to a sea-denial strategy concentrating on submarines, naval mines and the AShM. One of the first products of the decision was the SS-N-2 Styx missile. Further products were to follow, and they were soon loaded on to the Soviet Air Force's Tu-95 Bear and Tu-22 Blinder bombers, in the case of the air-launched KS-1 Komet.
In 1967, the Israeli Navy's destroyer Eilat was the first ship to be sunk by a ship-launched missile - a number of Styx missiles launched by Egyptian missile boats off the Sinai Peninsula.
In the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 the Indian Navy conducted two raids using OSA 1 - class missile boats employing the Styx on the Pakistani Naval base at Karachi. These raids resulted in the destruction or crippling of approximately two thirds of the Pakistani Navy. Major losses included two destroyers, a fleet oiler, an ammunition ship, approximately a dozen merchant ships and numerous smaller craft. Major shore based facilities, including fuel storage tanks and naval installations were also destroyed. The Osas returned to base without loss.
The Battle of Latakia in 1973 (during the Yom Kippur / Ramadan War) was the scene of the world's first combat between anti-ship missile-equipped missile boats. In this battle, the Israeli Navy destroyed Syrian warships without suffering any damage, using electronic countermeasures for defense. After defeating the Syrian navy the Israeli missile boats also sunk a number of Egyptian warships, again without suffering any damage in return, thus achieving total naval supremacy for the rest of the war.
Anti-ship missiles were used in the 1982 Falklands/Malvinas War. The British warship HMS Sheffield, a 4,820 ton Type 42 Destroyer, was struck by a single air-launched Exocet AShM, she later sank as a result of the damage that she sustained. The container ship Atlantic Conveyor was also sunk by an Exocet. HMS Glamorgan was damaged when she was struck by an MM38 missile launched from an improvised trailer-based launcher taken from the Argentine Navy destroyer ARA Comodoro Seguí by Navy technicians,[1] but she was able to take evasive action that restricted the damage.
In 1987, a US Navy guided-missile frigate, the USS Stark, was hit by an Exocet anti-ship missile fired by an Iraqi Mirage F-1 fighter plane. Stark was damaged, but she was able steam to a friendly port for temporary repairs.
In October 1987, the Sungari, an American-owned tanker steaming under the Liberian flag and a Kuwaiti tanker steaming under the American flag, the Sea Isle City, were hit by Iranian HY-2 missiles.
In 1988 ASMs were fired by both American and Iranian forces in Operation Praying Mantis in the Persian Gulf. During this naval battle, several Iranian warships were hit by American ASMs (and by the US Navy's Standard missiles - SAMs which were doing double-duty in the anti-ship role). The US Navy hit the Iranian Navy light frigate IS Sahand with three Harpoon missiles, four AGM-123 Skipper rocket-propelled bombs, a Walleye laser-guided bomb, and several 1,000 lb "iron bombs". Despite the large number of munitions and successful hits, the 1,540 ton IS Sahand did not sink until fire reached her ammunition magazine, causing it to detonate, blowing the frigate to bits.[2] In the same engagement, American warships fired three Standard missiles at an Iranian Navy corvette. This corvette had such a low profile above the water that a Harpoon missile that arrived several minutes later could not lock on to it with its targeting radars.
In 2006, Lebanese Hezbollah fighters fired an AShM at the Israeli corvette INS Hanit, inflicting battle damage, but this warship managed to return to Israel in one piece and under its own power. A second missile in this same salvo struck and sank an Egyptian merchant ship.
| Name | Year | Weight | Warhead | Range | Speed (km/h) | Propulsion | launched by | Guidance | Built by | Comments |
| Fritz X | 1943 | kg | 320 kg | 5 km | 1235 km/h | none | Air | manual (radio link) | DE | used in combat |
| Henschel Hs 293 | 1943 | kg | 295 kg | 5.0 km | 828 km/h | Liquid-propellant, then gliding | Air | manual (radio link) | DE | used in combat |
| Kh-55 | 1984 | kg | 200 kt nuclear/410 kg conventional | 3000 km | 828 km/h | turbofan | Air | Inertial by Radar, TERCOM, Infrared | USSR/Russia | |
| Blohm & Voss BV 246 | 1943 | kg | 435 kg | 210 km | 450 km/h (280 mph) | none | Air | manual (radio link) | DE | |
| Ohka | 1943 | kg | 1200 kg | 36 km | 630 km/h | Solid-propellant | Air | human kamikaze | JP | used in combat |
| Bat | 1942 | kg | 273 kg | 37 km | 260–390 km/h | None | Air | manual (radio link) | USA | used in combat |
| Boeing Harpoon | 1977 | 691 kg | 221 kg | 280 km | 864 km/h | turbojet engine | Air, surface, sub | radar (B3: midcourse update) | USA | used in combat |
| AS.34 Kormoran | 1991 | 630 kg | 220 kg | 35 km | Mach 0.9 | rocket | Air | Inertial, active radar | DE | |
| Penguin | 1972 | 385 kg | 130 kg | 55+ km | high subsonic | Solid propellant | Air, surface, sub | Inertial, laser, IR | NOR | |
| AGM-65F Maverick | 1972 | 300 kg | 140 kg | 17 nm (30 km) | supersonic | Solid propellant | Air, | Laser, IR | USA | used in combat |
| Naval Strike Missile | 2009 | 410 kg | 125 kg | 185 km | high subsonic | turbojet and solid fuel booster | Air, surface | Inertial, GPS, terrain-reference, imaging IR, target database | NOR | |
| AGM-123 Skipper II | 1985 | 582 kg | 450 kg | 25 km | 1,100 km/h | solid-fueled | Air | laser-guided | USA | |
| Aerospatiale SS.12/AS.12 | 1960 | kg | 28 kg | 7 km | 370 km/h | solid-fueled | Air, surface | wire MCLOS | FR | |
| BGM-109B Tomahawk | 1983 | 1.200 kg | 450 kg | 450 km | 880 km/h | turbofan | Air, surface, sub | GPS, TERCOM, DSMAC | USA | used in combat |
| Rb 04 | 1955 | kg | 300 kg | 32 km | subsonic | solid propellant | Air | active radar | SWE | |
| RB 08 | 1966 | kg | kg | 70 km | subsonic | turbojet | surface | radio link active radar | SWE | |
| RBS-15 | 1985 | 800 kg | 200 kg | 200 km | subsonic | turbojet | Air, surface | inertial, GPS, radar | SWE | |
| Exocet | 1979 | 670 kg | 165 kg | 180 km | 1134 km/h | solid propellant | Air, surface, sub | Inertial, active radar | FR | used in combat |
| Gabriel | 1962 | 522 kg | 150 kg | 60 km | 840 km/h | solid-fuel rocket | Air, surface | active radar | IL | used in combat |
| Otomat | 1977 | 770 kg | 210 kg | 180+ km | 1116 km/h | Turbojet | Surface | Inertial, GPS, active radar | IT | |
| Martel | 1984 | 550 kg | 150 kg | 60 km max | 1070 km/h | solid propellant | Air | passive radar, video | UK/FR | |
| Sea Eagle | 1985 | kg | 230 kg | 110 km + | 1000 km/h | Turbojet | Air | Inertia, active radar | UK | |
| Sea Skua | 1983 | 145 kg | 28 kg | 25 km | 950 km/h | solid fuel | Air | semi-active radar | UK | used in combat |
| RIM-66 Standard | 1967 | 707 kg | blast fragmentation | 74 to 167 km | 4140 km/h | solid fuel | Surface | inertial, semi-active radar | USA | used in combat |
| RIM-67 Standard | 1981 | 1.350 kg | 62 kg | 120–185 km | 4140 km/h | solid fuel | Surface | inertial, semi-active radar | USA | |
| LRASM | 2013[3] | liquid fuel | Surface | USA | ||||||
| KSShch (SS-N-1 SCRUBBER) | 1958 | kg | nuclear | 40 km | 1150 km/h (Mach 0.95) | liquid-fuel rocket | Surface | inertial | USSR | |
| P-15 Termit (SS-N-2 STYX) | 1958 | kg | 454 kg | 80 km | 1100 km/h | Liquid fuel rocket | Surface | active radar, IR | USSR | used in combat |
| P-5 Pyatyorka (SS-N-3 SHADDOCK) | 1959 | kg | 1000 kg | 750 km | 1000 km/h | turbojet | Surface | Inertial, mid course correction, active radar | USSR | |
| KH-22 (AS-4 Kitchen) | 1962 | kg | conventional/nuclear 1000 kg | 400 km | 4000 km/h | liquid-fuel rocket | Air | inertial | USSR | |
| P-70 Ametist (SS-N-7 STARBRIGHT) | 1968 | kg | 500 kg | 65 km | 1050 km/h | solid rocket | sub | inertial, terminal homing | USSR | |
| Moskit (SS-N-22 SUNBURN) | 1970 | 4.500 kg | 320 kg | 120 km | 3600 km/h | ramjet | Surface, Air | active radar, IR | USSR | |
| P-120 Malakhit (SS-N-9 SIREN) | 1972 | kg | 500 kg (1,100 lb) | 110 km | Mach 0.9 | Turbojet, solid fuel | Surface | Inertial, mid course correction, active radar | USSR | used in combat |
| P-800 Oniks (SS-N-26) | 1983 | 3.000 kg | 250 kg | 300 km | 3600 km/h | ramjet | Surface, Air | active-passive, radar | USSR | |
| 3M-54 Klub (SS-N-27 SIZZLER) | 1993 | 1.300-2.300 kg | 400 kg | 300 km | 735–3675 km/h | Turbojet | Surface, Sub | Inertial + Active Radar | USSR | |
| Kh-35 (AS-20 KAYAK) | 1983 | 520 kg | 145 kg | 130 km | 970 km/h | turbofan | Surface, Air | Inertial, active radar | USSR | |
| KH-15 (AS-16 Kickback) | 1988 | 1.200 kg | 150 kg conventional/nuclear | 300 km | 6200 km/h | solid-fuel rocket | Air | inertial or active radar | USSR | |
| Hae Sung-I (SSM-700K) | 2005 | 718 kg | 300 kg | 150 km | 1013 km/h | Turbojet | Ship, Surface | Inertial, active radar | S.Korea | |
| SOM (missile) | 2006 | 600 kg | 230 kg | 185+ km | 1153 km/h | Turbojet | Air | INS / GPS, Terrain Referenced Navigation, Automatic Target Recognition, Imaging Infrared Seeker | Turkey | |
| BrahMos | 2006 | 2.500 kg (air), 3.000 kg (ground) | 300 kg | 290 km | 3675 km/h | ramjet | Ship,Surface, Air,Sub | Inertial, active radar | India/Russia | |
| DF-21D | 2010 | kg | Kinetic energy penetrator | 1500+ km[4] | 12250 km/h (Mach 10) | solid rocket | Transporter erector launcher, sub | Over-the-horizon radar, satellites, UAV, active sensor | China | Initial operating capability[5] |
Anti-ship missiles represent a fundamental and hard-to-counter threat to naval surface combatants. Unlike the land-based combatant, who has the advantage of concealment, terrain, and, fundamentally, ground beneath their feet, the naval surface combatant is alone, presenting a warm target easily distinguishable from the cold water that surrounds them, with a ship or boat sailing on a flat, relatively featureless expanse of ocean that offers no concealment or shelter, and is (eventually) naturally deadly to human life. As a result, guided missiles present a much greater threat to the naval combatant. Possessing a speed and an agility that naval platforms cannot forseeably match, as well as computerized "smart" guidance systems and a heavy payload of high-explosive, the modern anti-ship missile, once it has acquired its target, is an enemy that the target ship cannot usually run from, hide from, physically avoid, or absorb.
Therefore, to counter the threat posed, the modern surface combatant has to either avoid being acquired by a platform possessing anti-ship missiles in the first place, destroy the enemy anti-ship-missile-carrying weapons system before it can launch any of its anti-ship missiles, or possess active defense systems capable of deceiving or destroying the anti-ship missile before it hits its target. Modern navies have spent thousands, if not millions, of man-years considering and responding to the threat of anti-ship missiles since World War II. The multiple, layered, computerized, active and passive defense systems employed by modern surface naval combatants are designed, with certain exceptions, primarily to counter the anti-ship missile threat.
The first layer of anti-missile missile defense by a modern, fully equipped Aircraft Carrier Task Force is always the long-range missile-carrying fighter planes of the aircraft carrier itself. Several fighters are kept on combat air patrol 24 hours a day, seven days a week when at sea, and many more are put aloft when the situation warrants, such as during wartime or when a threat to the task force is detected.
These fighters patrol up to hundreds of miles away from the Carrier Task Force and they are equipped with excellent airborne radar systems. When spotting an approaching aircraft on a threatening flight profile, it is the responsibility of the CAP to intercept it before any missile is launched. If this cannot be achieved in time, the missiles themselves can be targeted by the fighters's own weapons systems, usually their air-to-air missiles but, in extremis, their cannon.
However, some AShM's might "leak" past the Carrier Task Force's fighter-plane defenses. Additionally, many modern warships operate independently of carrier-based protection and must look to their own resources to provide defence of the ship. Under these circumstances, the ship itself must utilise the multi-layered defence with which it has been endowed.
For example, some warships, such as the US Navy's Ticonderoga-class cruisers or the British Royal Navy's Type 45 destroyers, make use of a combination of a powerful radar system, integrated computer control systems and agile surface-to-air missiles in order to simultaneously track, engage and destroy incoming anti-ship missiles. The American system, known as AEGIS, is also used on Japanese, Spanish, Dutch, and ROK ships, and has been selected for development on future Australian warships. It, and its international equivalents, is designed to negate massed - though finite - numbers of incoming missiles.
Any missiles that manage to pass through the SAM interception net can then be deceived with electronic countermeasures or decoys; engaged with the ship's main gun armarment (if it possesses such a thing); or, as a last resort, with a close-in weapon system (CIWS), such as the American Phalanx or the European Goalkeeper. Russia (and the former Soviet Union), various European nations and the People's Republic of China have developed and deployed similar systems.
As effective as these naval air defense systems are, they only retain their effectiveness as long as they still have ammunition. Although expensive, anti-ship missiles still remain extremely cost-effective even when launched in their most dangerous threat modality - namely, in massive quantities intended to saturate and overwhelm their targets' defenses. Given that the cost of a single Nimitz-class supercarrier, not to mention its crewmen, pilots, and aircraft on board, is far in excess of even one thousand of the most modern anti-ship missiles available, a quantity that, if they could be launched en masse at one target, would surely devastate even the most well-defended aircraft carrier that any sea-faring power could conceivably deploy.
As such, navies place a high premium on defending against anti-ship missiles, as even a handful getting through ship-based defenses could badly hurt an entire Naval Task Force.
To counter these defense systems, countries such as Russia are developing or deploying very low-flying missiles (about five meters above sea level) that slowly cruise at a very low level to within a short range of their target and then, at the point when radar detection becomes inevitable, initiate a supersonic, high-agility sprint (potentially with anti-aircraft missile detection and evasion) to close the terminal distance. Missiles, such as the SS-N-27 Sizzler, that incorporate this sort of threat modality are regarded by US Navy analysts as potentially being able to penetrate current US Navy defensive systems.[6]
Recent years have seen a growing amount of attention being paid to the possibility of ballistic missiles being re-purposed or designed for an anti-ship role. Speculation has focused on the development of such missiles for use by China's People's Liberation Army Navy. Such an Anti-ship ballistic missile would approach its target extremely rapidly, making it very difficult to intercept.[7]
Countermeasures against anti-ship missiles include:
On February 25, 1991, during the first Gulf War, the Phalanx-equipped USS Jarrett (FFG-33) was a few miles from the USS Missouri (BB-63) and the destroyer HMS Gloucester (D96). The ships were attacked by an Iraqi Silkworm missile (often referred to as the Seersucker), at which Missouri fired its SRBOC chaff. The Phalanx system on Jarrett, operating in the automatic target-acquisition mode, fixed upon Missouri's chaff, releasing a burst of rounds. From this burst, four rounds hit Missouri which was two to three miles (about 5 km) from Jarrett at the time. There were no injuries.[8] A Sea Dart missile was then launched from HMS Gloucester, which destroyed the Iraqi missile, achieving the first successful engagement of a missile by a missile during combat at sea.
Modern stealth ships – or ships that at least employ some stealth technology – to reduce the risk of detection and to make them a harder target for the missile itself. These passive countermeasures include:
Examples of these include the Norwegian Skjold class patrol boat, the Swedish Visby class corvette, the German Sachsen class frigate, the US Navy's Arleigh Burke class destroyer, their JapaneseMaritime Self-Defense Force's close counterparts in AEGIS warships, the Chinese Type 054 frigate and the Type 052C destroyer, the Indian INS Shivalik Class, and the French La Fayette class frigate.
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