Sea-Based BMD Gains Credibility

Aviation Week and Space Technology ^ | 01/08/2010 | Bill Sweetman

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

A new direction for missile defense will continue to evolve in 2010, as what was once regarded as the stuff of fantasy becomes accepted as an essential component of defense and security.

One trend will be the fusion of defense against aerodynamic and ballistic targets into a common network. While missiles and other weapons—such as short-range guns and lasers—are tailored for effectiveness against different targets, sensors and sensor platforms gather information on both and pass it through a battle-management system, which activates the shooters that are in the best position to engage.

This trend can be seen at work in the U.S. Navy’s air and missile defense system, based on the Aegis radar and Standard Missile family. Aegis ships are being equipped to accept target-cueing from land-based TPY-2 X-band radars and E-2 early warning and control aircraft. In a cruise missile defense role, E-2s detect and track missiles and control an engagement with an SM-6 missile, which may complete the engagement before the target is within line-of-sight of the launching ship.

The Stunner missile, jointly developed by Rafael and Raytheon and part of the David’s Sling system, is due for its first intercept test in 2010, and also points toward the growing integration of air and missile defenses. Characterized as a lower-cost equivalent to the U.S. PAC-3 missile, Stunner will be fired from mobile launchers and is aimed at targets between the envelope of the Spyder system (which uses boosted versions of Rafael’s air-to-air Python and Derby missiles) and the Arrow ballistic missile defense (BMD) system.

[tlb]

>>>A new direction for missile defense will continue to evolve in 2010, as what was once regarded as the stuff of fantasy

Assault on the Wayne (1971)

Leonard Nimoy battles enemy spies on his nuclear submarine as traitors try to sabotage the testing of seabased ABMs.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065431/

Took them almost 40 years to catch up.