Page 11 - LIMA 2023 - DAY 2 | DAILY NEWS

different occasions showcased the mis- the NSM can be launched from a variety to GPS interference. The Israeli Navy and
sile’s capabilities in that sphere, including in of platforms against a variety of targets Republic of Singapore Navy are likely to
June 2022 when it was launched from the on sea and land. Extremely maneuverable, be launch customers, but the land-based
Arleigh Burke class destroyer USS Benfold the missile is completely passive and has variant of the Blue Spear already has an
(DDG-65) to hit the decommissioned Oliver proven sea-skimming capabilities. The export customer – Estonia. Finland has
Hazard Perry class frigate USS Vandegrift. Autonomous Target Recognition (ATR) of selected the Gabriel V for its Pojhanmaa-
The first test of the SM-6 in an anti-ship role the seeker ensures that the correct target class corvette.
happened in 2016, when it was success- is detected, recognized, and hit - at sea or
fully used to hit the decommissioned USS on land. In collaboration with Thales, IAI is also
Reuben James at the Pacific Missile Range working on the Sea Serpent anti-ship
Facility, off Hawaii, in 2016. In April 2021, an Produced by Kongsberg and managed in missile. The Surface-to-Surface missile,
SM-6 launched from the Arleigh Burke class the U.S. by Raytheon. NSM reached Initial which is being developed as a contender
destroyer USS John Finn hit a mock sur- Operational Capability on the Norwegian for the Royal Navy’s surface-to-surface
face target as part of a manned-unmanned Fridtjof Nansen-class frigates and the guided weapon (SSGW) programme, has
teaming (MUM-T) exercise. Norwegian Skjold Class corvettes in 2012. a range well in excess of 200 kilometers.
The missile is also in use by the Polish Navy The missile has an RF seeker head and a
The SM-6 has more than double the range in a coastal-Defence role, the U.S. Navy’s sophisticated data analysis and weapon
of the Harpoon Block II that can hit targets Littoral Combat Ship and Constellation- control system to provide precise target
at a range of around 75 miles. Its smaller class frigate programmes, and the U.S. detection, discrimination, and classifica-
warhead limits the missile’s capability Marine Corps’ NMESIS unmanned-mo- tion. Capable of overcoming both kinetic
against larger surface ships, but it makes bile-launch truck. The missile has also counter-fire and sophisticated electronic
up for the lack of size with its speed - in been selected by the navies of Malaysia, countermeasures, the missile will locate
excess of Mach 3. However, the SM-6 is Germany, Canada, Romania and Australia. and attack its target in littoral, open-ocean,
more expensive than other Naval surface and overland environments.
warfare weapons as it has been designed IAI Makes a Mark
primarily for anti-air and ballistic missile Proteus Advanced Systems, a joint ven- MBDA & The FC/ASW
Defence missions. ture between Israel Aerospace Industries Programme

Naval Strike Missile (IAI) and ST Engineering, unveiled the Blue Meanwhile, missile manufacturer MBDA
Spear fifth generation surface-to-surface is making progress on the Future Cruise/
In September 2022, the Spanish Navy missile (5G SSM), which has a combined Anti-Ship Weapon (FC/ASW) programme,
selected Kongsberg’s Naval Strike Missile anti-ship and land attack capability at high which aims replace the air launched Scalp/
(NSM) as the replacement for its Harpoon subsonic speed, at the Singapore Airshow Storm Shadow as well as the air and ship
missiles. According to reports, the service last year. Based on IAI’s Gabriel, the mis- launched Exocet and Harpoon anti-ship
picked NSM over MBDA’s Exocet MM40 sile has an air-breathing turbojet engine missiles in service with French and British
Block 3C and Saab RBS 15 Mk3+. The fed with liquid jet fuel, with a range of 180 air forces and navies. In 2019, MBDA and
NSM is expected to be delivered before miles. The missile features an active radar its partner companies in the two compa-
the Harpoon is retired from active service seeker, accurate INS-based navigation nies moved past the “Key Review” phase
around 2030. capabilities, maximum accuracy target of the programme. The programme intends
acquisition, and a robust system immune to deliver a weapon that will be operational
The Royal Navy is expected to retire the by 2028.
Harpoon much earlier. In November last
year, the UK Ministry of Defence signed a In December last year, MBDA commenced
deal with Kongsberg to replace the Harpoon deliveries of the first Exocet MM40 Block 3c
Block 1C missiles on 11 of its warships, anti-ship missiles to the French Navy. The
including Type 45 destroyers and type 23 delivery of the missiles had been delayed
frigates, with the NSM. In January this year, since 2021. The service has ordered 55
the service’s Type 23 frigate HMS Somerset missiles, with deliveries expected to be
announced the commencement of NSM completed by the end of 2023.
upgrade work. The missile, which will be
ready for operations onboard the frigate New Names
in the first half of 2024, is only a stop-gap The market is also seeing the entry of
solution for the Type 23 frigates and will be new players. At the recent LAAD 23 event
replaced by the Anglo-French Future Cruise in Brazil, the UAE’s Edge Group signed an
Anti-Ship Weapon (FCASW), around 2028. agreement with the Brazilian Navy for the
The FCASW will also be on Royal Air Force joint development of long-range anti-ship
Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets. missiles and a supersonic missile. While the
Brazilian Navy will provide its portfolio of
The NSM, which is a subsonic cruise missiles and its fleet for testing purposes,
missile with a 275-pound explosive war- EDGE will bring to the table electronic war-
head, is smaller than the Harpoon, which fare and smart weapons solutions. The
also has a larger 500-pound warhead. It companies intend to pursue export oppor-
however has a range of 100-plus nautical tunities for their products in the light of the
miles, compared to the Harpoon’s 75 nm growing global demand for such missiles.
range. A fifth-generation anti-ship missile, commissioned between 2025 and 2028.
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