alcm cruise missile

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Kh-101 / Kh-102

The Kh-101 / Kh-102 is a line of conventional and nuclear capable air-launched cruise missiles (ALCM) developed and deployed by Russia. A stealthy missile, the Kh-101/-102 is designed to defeat air defense systems by flying at low, terrain-hugging altitudes to avoid radar systems. The Kh-101 carries a conventional warhead, while the Kh-102 is believed to carry a 250 kt nuclear payload.

Kh-101 / Kh-102 at a Glance

Kh-101 / Kh-102 Development

Kh-101 / kh-102 specifications, service history.

Since entering service in 2012, the Russian air force has employed the Kh-101 several times in combat operations.

• Andrei Akulov, “Russian Kh-101 Air to Surface Cruise Missile: Unique and Formidable,” Strategic Culture , October 19, 2016, https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2016/10/19/russian-kh-101-air-to-surface-cruise-missile-unique-and-formidable.html.
• “Kh-101/-102” in IHS Jane’s Weapons: Strategic 2015-2016, ed. James C O’Halloran (United Kingdom: IHS, 2016), 189.
• Ibid; Russian Ministry of Defense, “Strategic Tu-95MS bombers destroyed the ISIS militants’ command post and storages in Syria with missile attack,” July 5, 2017, http://eng.mil.ru/en/news_page/country/more.htm?id=12132186@egNews.
• Dave Majumdar, “Ready for War: Russia’s Stealthy Kh-101 Cruise Missile Debuts in Syria,” National Interest , November 18, 2015 http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/ready-war-russias-stealthy-kh-101-cruise-missile-debuts-14387; Akulov.
• “Tactical Missile Corporation plans to upgrade Kh-101 Cruise Missile,” Russian Aviation, August 19, 2016 https://www.ruaviation.com/news/2016/8/19/6541/?h.
• O’Halloran, 189.
• Ibid; Akulov.
• “Kh-101/-102” in IHS Jane’s Weapons: Strategic 2015-2016, 189.
• “Kh-65/ Kh-SD/ Kh-101,” Federation of American Scientists, https://fas.org/nuke/guide/russia/bomber/kh-101.htm.
• RC Porter, “Top-Notch Kh-101 Cruise Missiles that Russia Unleashes on Daesh in Raqqa,” Fortuna’s Corner (blog), February 19, 2017, https://fortunascorner.com/2017/02/19/the-cruise-missiles-russia-is-using-in-syria/; Nicholas de Larrinaga “Russia Launches Long Range Air Sorties into Syria,” IHS Jane’s Defense Weekly , November 17, 2015, https://web.archive.org/web/20151118145706/http://www.janes.com/article/56062/russia-launches-long-range-air-sorties-into-syria.
• David Cenciotti, “Russia Tu-95 Bear Bombers Escorted by Su-30SM Jets Carry Out Air Strike in Syria using Kh-101 Strategic Cruise Missiles,” The Aviationist , July 5, 2017, https://theaviationist.com/2017/07/05/russian-tu-95-bear-bombers-escorted-by-su-30sm-jets-carry-out-air-strike-in-syria-using-kh-101-strategic-cruise-missile/.
• “Russia hits Islamic State in Syria with advanced cruise missiles,” Reuters , July 5, 2017 https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-russia-idUSKBN19Q1QP.
• Russian Ministry of Defense, “Tu-95MS bombers fired cruise missiles at terrorist objects’ in Syria,” September 26, 2017, http://eng.mil.ru/en/news_page/country/more.htm?id=12143592@egNews.

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AGM-86 Conventional Air Launched Cruise Missile

Contractor: Boeing Defense and Space Group

Guidance Contractors: Litton Guidance and Control, and Interstate Electronics Corp. (AGM-86C/D model)

Power Plant: Williams Research Corp. F-107-WR-10 turbofan engine

Thrust: 600 lbs

Length: 20 ft, 9 in

Weight: 3,150 lbs

Diameter: 24.5 in

Wingspan: 12 ft

Range: AGM-86B: 1,500+ miles; AGM-86C: 600 nm

Speed: AGM-86B, 550 mph; AGM 86C/D classified

Guidance System: AGM-86B, Litton inertial navigation element with terrain contour-matching updates; AGM 86C/D, Litton INS element integrated with multi-channel onboard GPS

Warheads: AGM-86B, nuclear capable; AGM-86C: Block 0, 2,000 pound class, and Block I , 3,000 pound class; AGM-86D, advance unitary penetrating warhead, 1,200 pound class

The AGM-86B air-launched cruise missiles and AGM-86C/D conventional air-launched cruise missiles were developed to increase the effectiveness of U.S. Air Force B-52H Stratofortress bombers. The CALCM has been used since the 1990s for long-range precision strike on the opening hours of conflict.

The small, winged AGM-86B/C/D missile is powered by a turbofan jet engine that propels it at sustained subsonic speeds. After launch, the missile's folded wings, tail surfaces and engine inlet deploy. The AGM-86B is then able to fly complicated routes to a target through use of a terrain contour-matching guidance system. The AGM-86C/D uses an onboard Global Positioning System coupled with its inertial navigation system to fly. This allows the missile to guide itself to the target with pinpoint accuracy.

AGM-86B/C/D missiles increase flexibility in target selection. AGM-86B missiles can be air-launched in large numbers by the bomber force. B-52H bombers carry six AGM-86B/C/D missiles on each of two externally mounted pylons and eight internally on a rotary launcher, giving the B-52H a maximum capacity of 20 missiles per aircraft.

The AGM-86C CALCM differs from the AGM-86B air launched cruise missile in that it carries a conventional blast/fragmentation payload rather than a nuclear payload and employs a GPS aided INS.

An enemy force would have to counterattack each of the missiles, making defense against them costly and complicated. The enemy's defenses are further hampered by the missiles' small size and low-altitude flight capability, which makes them difficult to detect on radar.

In February 1974, the Air Force entered into contract to develop and flight-test the prototype AGM-86A air-launched cruise missile, which was slightly smaller than the later B, C and D models. The 86A model did not go into production. Instead, in January 1977, the Air Force began full-scale development of the AGM-86B, which greatly enhanced the B-52's capabilities and helped America maintain a strategic deterrent.

Production of the initial 225 AGM-86B missiles began in fiscal year 1980 and production of a total 1,715 missiles was completed in October 1986. The air-launched cruise missile had become operational four years earlier, in December 1982, with the 416th Bombardment Wing, Griffiss Air Force Base, N.Y., which deactivated when the base closed in 1995. Besides its initial basing at Griffiss, the ALCM has also been based at: Grand Forks AFB, N.D., Wurtsmith AFB, Mich., Fairchild AFB, Wash., Eaker AFB, Ark., and Carswell AFB, Texas. The ALCM is currently fielded at Minot AFB, N.D., and Barksdale AFB, La.

In June 1986 a limited number of AGM-86B missiles were converted to carry a high-explosive blast/fragmentation warhead and an internal GPS. They were redesignated as the AGM-86C CALCM. This modification also replaced the B model's terrain contour-matching guidance system and integrated a GPS capability with the existing inertial navigation computer system.

The CALCM became operational in January 1991 at the onset of Operation Desert Storm. Seven B-52s, from Barksdale AFB, La., launched 35 missiles at designated launch points in the U. S. Central Command's area of responsibility to attack high-priority targets in Iraq. These "round-robin" missions marked the beginning of the air campaign for Kuwait's liberation and are the longest known aircraft combat sorties up to that time (more than 14,000 miles and 35 hours of flight).

CALCM is a long-range standoff weapon that has been employed effectively in combat in Operation Desert Storm, Desert Strike, Desert Fox, Operation Allied Force, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

In 1996, 1997 and 2001, 200 additional CALCMs were produced from excess ALCMs. These missiles, designated Block I, incorporate improvements such as a larger and improved conventional payload (3,000 pound blast class), a multi-channel GPS receiver and integration of the buffer box into the GPS receiver. The upgraded avionics package was retrofitted into all existing CALCM (Block 0) so all AGM-86C missiles are electronically identical.

The final 50 missiles that were converted from the AGM-86B are the AGM-86D.

The AGM-86C/D were previously based at Fairchild AFB, Wash., and are currently fielded at Barksdale AFB, La., and Andersen AFB, Guam.

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Tinker Celebrates 75 Years: Boeing AGM-86B/C/D ‘ALCM’ missile profile

Courtesy Photo | An AGM-86B Air Launched Cruise Missile captured in-flight from a chase aircraft over... ... read more read more

Courtesy Photo | An AGM-86B Air Launched Cruise Missile captured in-flight from a chase aircraft over the White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, during a program test flight in this undated photo. Photo courtesy Tinker Air Force Base History Office.   see less | View Image Page

OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA, UNITED STATES

Story by greg l. davis  , 72nd air base wing.

The AGM-86B/C/D Air Launched Cruise Missile is an air breathing missile capable of sustain subsonic flight using both inertial, Litton terrain contour matching and Global Positioning System guidance. Three distinct versions of the missile consist of the B model with a W80–1 nuclear warhead, the C model with conventional 1,000 pound high explosive blast and fragmentation warhead. The final version is the AGM-86D conventional explosives, but with a penetrating warhead. Tinker's role with the air launched cruise missile centers around the sustainment, repair and overhaul of the F107 turbofan engine along with continuing software upgrades. The F107 is a two-shaft engine weighing a mere 146 pounds yet capable of producing 600 pounds maximum thrust. This gives the missile a maximum speed of 500 mph and range in excess of 1,500 miles. Tinkers OC–ALC became the ALCM program manager on 12 October 1974 with 3,680 F107 engines having been overhauled by 30 September 2000, the last year of reported numbers on file. The missile gained notoriety during the opening days of operation Desert Storm in January 1991 as seven B-52s launched 35 missiles to attack targets inside Iraq from stand-off ranges. The missiles follow preprogrammed attack routes after being dropped from the wings of the B-52s. A major cable news network captured multiple missiles as they cruised toward and struck high-value targets with live-narration riveting the audience and sending the leadership of Iraq in to hiding. The AGM-86 missile continues to be used by the US Air Force bomber fleet and can be carried internally by the B-52 using the common strategic rotary launcher to reduce parasitic drag and increase the range of the aircraft. The missile is also certified for employment with the B-1B Lancer and B-2A Spirit fleet of bombers. The US Air Force accepted 1,715 missiles between 1979 and 1986.

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This work, Tinker Celebrates 75 Years: Boeing AGM-86B/C/D ‘ALCM’ missile profile , by Greg L. Davis , identified by DVIDS , must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright .

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This is the AGM-86B, the second version of the U.S. Air Force's air-launched cruise missile (ALCM) and built by Boeing. Launched from B-52 bombers, the missile had a nuclear warhead, a turbofan jet engine, a range of approximately 2,400 km (1,500 miles), and two navigation systems that enabled it to fly close to the ground making it difficult for enemy radars to pick up. First deployed in 1982, some of the missiles began to be converted in 1986 to the AGM-86C with a conventional warhead and a Global Positioning System-aided navigation system. This missile was the second flight model tested and was transferred to NASM by the U.S. Air Force in 1982.

This object is on display in Rockets & Missiles at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, VA .

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• Military Aviation

U.S. AIR FORCE B-52 STRATOFORTRESS RECENTLY TESTED NUCLEAR CAPABLE AGM-86B AIR-LAUNCHED CRUISE MISSILE

In this article:

B-52 aircrews tested AGM-86B ALCMs

Air Force B-52H Stratofortress aircrews recently tested three unarmed AGM-86B air-launched cruise missiles  (ALCM), demonstrating the bomber force’s ability to configure, load, fly and deliver the nation’s only nuclear cruise missile.

The B-52H aircrews departed Minot Air Force Base (AFB), North Dakota, for the Utah Test and Training Range, about 80 miles west of Salt Lake City, Utah, and launched the unarmed ALCMs during three separate sorties.

The ALCM is a key air component of the nuclear triad, providing the nation a strategic capability to assure our allies and deter potential adversaries. It provides a clear, visible and tailorable deterrent effect, and denies geographic sanctuaries to potential adversaries.

The AGM-86B

The AGM-86B is designed to deliver a nuclear payload on target, destroying it on impact. As a standoff weapon, the ALCM can be launched from outside the combat area, allowing aircrews to strike distant targets with a high degree of accuracy without exposing themselves to potentially deadly enemy fire . A B-52H can carry six ALCMs on each of the two externally-mounted pylons and eight internally on a rotary launcher, giving the B-52H a maximum capacity of 20 missiles.

The ALCM sustainment program is managed by the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center (AFNWC) and the tests were conducted under Air Force Global Strike Command ’s (AFGSC) Nuclear Weapon System Evaluation Program, part of the Air Force’s ongoing effort to test weapons systems in training missions and prepare aircrews for future mission requirements. The integrated test team also included personnel, assets and aircraft from AFGSC’s 5th Bomb Wing at Minot AFB, its 2nd Bomb Wing at Barksdale AFB , Louisiana, and Air Combat Command’s 53rd Wing at Eglin AFB , Florida.

The ALCM was initially designed with a 10-year life span but has been in use for about 35 years, largely due to successful sustainment programs. While the current ALCM remains a safe, secure, effective and viable nuclear capability, it faces increasing sustainment and operational challenges against emerging threats as it continues to age. The Long Range Stand Off (LRSO) weapon is being developed to replace the ALCM, which the Air Force expects to start fielding by 2030.

The LRSO weapon system

“The LRSO will be a critical element of the United States’ nuclear deterrence strategy, but we must continue to support the ALCM program until it is fielded and these recent tests are clear indicators of the ALCM’s effectiveness and reliability,” said Maj. Gen. Scott Jansson, AFNWC commander and Air Force program executive officer for Strategic Systems.

This weapon system will be a cost-effective force multiplier for B-52, B-2 and B-21 aircraft to credibly deter adversaries and assure U.S. allies of our deterrent capabilities. Currently in source selection, up to two LRSO contracts are expected to be awarded in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017.

About 200 personnel in AFNWC’s Air-Delivered Capabilities Directorate deliver, sustain and support air-delivered nuclear weapon systems. The directorate is located at Kirtland AFB and oversees locations at Tinker AFB, Oklahoma; Eglin AFB, Florida; Joint Base San Antonio, Texas; Ramstein AB, Germany; Robins AFB, Georgia; and Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. The ALCM sustainment program is managed at the Tinker AFB location.

The AFNWC is responsible for synchronizing all aspects of nuclear materiel management on behalf of Air Force Materiel Command in direct support of AFGSC. Headquartered at Kirtland AFB, the center has about 1,000 personnel assigned at 17 locations worldwide.

Photo credit: Staff Sgt. Roidan Carlson, Senior Airman Kristoffer Kaubisch and Senior Airman Andrew Crawford / U.S. Air Force

Dario Leone

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USAF to start LRSO cruise missile integration on B-52H in 2019

AMID RISING TENSION WITH NORTH KOREA JAPAN CONSIDERS ACQUIRING PREEMPTIVE STRIKE CAPABILITY

LOCKHEED MARTIN, RAYTHEON SELECTED TO DEVELOP AGM-86B REPLACEMENT

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The Air Force’s New Stealth Cruise Missile Is a Go. But Do We Need It?

Let's make sense of the controversial Long Range Stand Off.

• The Long Range Stand Off (LRSO) missile will arm Air Force strategic bombers.
• LRSO will have the range to make even B-52s effective nuclear platforms.

The U.S. Air Force has awarded Raytheon a contract to develop the service’s next-generation stealth cruise missile. The Long Range Stand Off (LRSO) missile will arm B-21 Raider and B-52 Stratofortress bombers, allowing them to launch missiles against targets without penetrating enemy airspace.

The Air Force flies two types of nuclear-capable bombers: the B-2 Spirit and B-52H Stratofortress. (The B-1 Lancer is no longer capable of carrying nukes and is now a conventional munitions-only bomber.) The bombers are armed with two kinds of nuclear weapons: the B61 and B83 free-fall gravity bombs, as well as the AGM-86B Air Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM).

While free-fall bombs typically have large explosive yields (the B83 has a yield of 1,300 kilotons, for example), the bomber must overfly the target. On the plus side, bomber crews can cancel the drop at the last minute. Bombers can launch the ALCM at targets up to 1,500 miles away, but enemies can shoot the cruise missile down. A cruise missile also takes up to 2 hours to reach its target, and it can’t be recalled during that time.

In the 1970s, nuclear bombers were on the verge of extinction. Advances in long-range air defense missiles and high-speed interceptors such as the Soviet MiG-25 made big, lumbering bombers like the B-52 sitting ducks in enemy airspace. But cruise missiles— effectively small, unmanned airplanes powered by turbofan engines, and low-flying to evade radar—allow bombers to launch against enemy targets long before they’re under threat.

A B-52, for example, could fire a salvo of ALCMs far from Soviet airspace, targeting enemy air defense installations. The B-52 could use ALCMs to blast a path to its main target, nuking MiGs on runways, radar sites, and enemy headquarters while remaining safely out of reach. Once the path is clear, the B-52 can then infiltrate enemy airspace and finally drop a high-yield gravity bomb on the target.

Cruise missiles are critical to the usefulness of bombers in a nuclear war. Without them, bombers would probably have to withdraw from the nuclear triad , removing a key capability—the ability to recall or cancel a nuclear strike—from America’s nuclear toolbox.

The Air Force has relied on the AGM-86B Air Launched Cruise Missile since the 1970s. Like any aging technology, the missile is increasingly difficult to maintain. The ALCM also lacks radar-evading stealth technology that would make it more difficult to detect by enemy defenses, increasing its likelihood of reaching its target.

LRSO, then, will be a stealthy missile with about the same range of 1,500 miles. The missile will also use the W80-4 thermonuclear warhead, a refurbished version of the older W80-1 thermonuclear warhead, with a customizable yield of 5 to 150 kilotons .

The new cruise missile is controversial. In 2015, a number of key U.S. Senators asked then-U.S. President Barack Obama to cancel the LRSO , saying the new missile was unnecessary given the development of the B61-12 nuclear gravity bomb and the forthcoming B-21 Raider bomber. Others warn that LRSO is “unnecessary” and “destabilizing.”

So, does the Air Force need its new stealth cruise missile? If it wants to keep the bomber leg of the nuclear triad , then the answer is yes. A B-21 Raider without cruise missiles would have to overfly every target to destroy it, a requirement that would dangerously expose the bomber and potentially add hours to a combat mission.

If such a bomber is tasked with destroying an enemy communications or headquarters site that transmits orders to launch more missiles, it could arrive at the target too late to interrupt the enemy’s plans— if it arrives at all.

In an ideal world, the U.S. could bargain with the other nuclear powers to gradually reduce—and even eliminate—nuclear weapons worldwide. An adversary must, however, recognize that America’s nukes are a threat in order to want to bargain to get rid of them.

Building LRSO isn’t the end of the world ... but using them is. Between those two points, the U.S. can trade nuclear missiles away in exchange for missiles in Russia or China targeting this country.

🎥 Now Watch This:

Kyle Mizokami is a writer on defense and security issues and has been at Popular Mechanics since 2015. If it involves explosions or projectiles, he's generally in favor of it. Kyle’s articles have appeared at The Daily Beast, U.S. Naval Institute News, The Diplomat, Foreign Policy, Combat Aircraft Monthly, VICE News , and others. He lives in San Francisco.

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Global Strike: Up close with the people and the systems

Decades late, the b-52 is getting a new nuclear weapon.

BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La., and WASHINGTON — The B-52 bomber first flew in 1952, but remains a vital part of America’s nuclear deterrent. Now, to keep the bomber relevant for its nuclear mission, the U.S. Air Force is preparing to spend billions of dollars to develop a new air-launched cruise missile .

The B-52’s nuclear option of choice is the AGM-86B air-launched cruise missile, commonly referred to as the ALCM. Fully loaded, the B-52 can carry 20 of the weapons. But like the plane that launches them, the weapons are on the older side, having been produced in the early to mid-1980s.

“A lot of this stuff predates the airmen I have working on 'em,” said Senior Master Sgt. Daniel Abrams-Trust, the cruise missile flight chief for the 2nd Munitions Squadron at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana. Interviews at Barksdale were conducted by journalist and Defense News contributor Jeff Bolton.

“So while it was extremely sophisticated at the time, it’s fallen out of favor. Some of that technology’s requiring service-life extensions where we identify maybe some high-failure areas, things that we need to replace,” Abrams-Trust said.

Click here for videos and more coverage of the B-52 and the B-2.

The ALCM “had an initial service life of 10 years,” Abrams-Trust added. “It was really only meant to go to early to mid-'90s, be replaced by the advanced cruise missile. And while we fielded that, advanced cruise missile had some challenges logistically, maintenance was difficult. So we’ve pushed through the ALCM even further.”

Lockheed Martin and Raytheon are currently on contract for $900 million as part of a four-and-a-half-year technology-maturation and risk-reduction phase to design the new weapon (the full cost of the heavily classified program is unknown). In fiscal 2022, the Air Force plans to choose between the designs. The service intends to integrate the weapon with its nuclear-capable bombers — the B-52, B-2 and B-21 — with initial fielding slated for the late 2020s.

Along with the newly designed ALCM is a newly designed warhead, known as the W80-4, currently in the early design stages with the National Nuclear Security Administration . Because the warhead is being designed at the same time as the delivery system — the first time in 30 years the two projects have been done in parallel — the program faces “unique” risks, according to NNSA’s most recent annual report to Congress.

The first production unit of the W80-4 is expected to be delivered in FY25, with completion of the production run by FY31. Costs are expected to range between $6.7 billion and $10.3 billion between FY18 and FY32; however, the warhead program experienced “a loss of $120 million in productivity due to delays associated with Continuing Resolutions since the beginning of FY 2016,” according to the NNSA report.

For a few years, it looked like the LRSO program might be in for a rough ride from congressional Democrats . But the introduction of even newer nuclear weapon systems through the 2018 Nuclear Posture Review appears to have taken the heat off the new cruise missile. And for advocates of the air-based leg of the nuclear triad, keeping the B-52 as up to date as possible is a good thing.

“When we say nuclear modernization, we are merely replacing the current triad. We are not expanding our capabilities, we’re not violating a treaty, we’re not developing a new capability. It’s a very reasonable response to the threat,” Robert Soofer, deputy assistant secretary of defense for nuclear and missile defense policy, said during the 2019 Defense News Conference .

With Russia and China modernizing their nuclear arsenals, and the U.S. engaged in what the Pentagon has termed as a renewal of “great power competition,” Soofer described the overall nuclear modernization efforts as “sensible," “reasonable” and “affordable.”

But keeping the nuclear deterrent viable doesn’t just involve technology, noted Lt. Col. James Daily, deputy commander of the 2nd Operations Group at Barksdale.

“The bomber is that flexible, visible and recallable arm of the triad, and one of the things that we're looking at is how do we do [operations] better everyday based on the environment,” Daily said.

“Back in the day, it was a two-player game during the Cold War. Now you’ve got multiple players, different environments and different considerations to include. We talk about extended deterrents for allies and things like that, so how do we better posture the force, is what we’re look at everyday.”

Aaron Mehta was deputy editor and senior Pentagon correspondent for Defense News, covering policy, strategy and acquisition at the highest levels of the Defense Department and its international partners.

Jeff Martin is the Associate Editor for Multimedia and the host & producer of Defense News Weekly, airing online and on American Forces Network worldwide. In his role as Associate Editor, he reports worldwide on the military and defense industry and leads a market-leading multimedia team.

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Long-range missiles, destructive capabilities key to Israel's response to attacks abroad

A fter the Houthi UAV attack on Tel Aviv on July 18, Israel responded with an airstrike on targets in Yemen . The operation involved a high number of planes and was very complex. It is essential to establish a solid capacity to prevent and respond to attacks of this kind.

In the “Outstretched Arm” operation carried out on July 20, 2024, the Israeli Air Force targeted Houthi warehouses, oil depots, power plants, and other military facilities in the port city of Hodeida in Yemen. The attack was in retaliation for an unmanned aerial vehicle launched from Yemen that exploded in Tel Aviv, killing one person and injuring 10. The attack was highly complex and included fighter jets and reconnaissance planes, accompanied by an aerial refueling plane. Carried out 1,800 km. from Israel, it was designed to deter the Houthis – with a heavy economic cost.

After the attack, Iran quickly announced that it would provide the Houthis with advanced defense systems to defend against similar attacks. Given the complexity and risks involved in such operations, it is worth considering why Israel has not yet developed a “standoff weapon” like the American Tomahawk cruise missile or the Russian Kalibr. Such a weapon would allow Israel to strike distant targets without the need for a large fleet of aircraft or risking pilots’ lives, especially in a multi-arena campaign scenario.

It’s important to note that various Israeli political figures raised this question. For instance, in the late 1990s, then-defense minister Moshe Arens sought to investigate the development of a “simple and affordable missile.” Additionally, former cabinet minister Yuval Steinitz stated in 2005 that the IDF needed to form a missile force that could operate from both land and sea in response to the threat from Iran.

Yisrael Beytenu Party leader Avigdor Liberman suggested this past April that, rather than spending approximately NIS 35 billion on F-35 aircraft, it would be possible to allocate NIS 20 billion to acquire fighter jets and earmark NIS 10 billion to establish a powerful missile force capable of addressing Israel’s operational requirements. The introduction of missiles of this type into the operational array would be expected to reduce the number of weapons needed to attack protected targets.

The US took one of its initial steps to align itself with Israel at the start of the Iron Swords War by sending the US Navy Ohio-class guided missile submarine (SSGN) to the eastern Mediterranean. This submarine is equipped with 154 Tomahawk cruise missiles.

Difficulty hitting its target

Opponents of standoff weapons argue that these weapons may have difficulty destroying hardened or underground targets, unlike airplanes, which can carry heavy and powerful offensive weapons designed for that purpose. They also argue that cruise missiles may struggle to penetrate advanced defense systems due to their aerodynamic performance, radar cross-section signature, and subsonic speed. Opponents also claim that advanced defense systems can intercept standoff ballistic missiles. Recent advancements have led to the development of Hypersonic Cruise Missiles, which possess high speed and maneuverability, enabling them to evade aerial detection and interception systems effectively.

Internal politics within the Israeli security system, present in all security establishments in the Western world, can link to the decision not to develop and deploy various types of missiles. For instance, researcher Gregory Engel explored this issue in an article titled “The Politics of Naval Innovation: Cruise Missiles and the Tomahawk.” Engel analyzed the origins and development of modern cruise missiles, focusing on the American Tomahawk cruise missile. He focused his research on the politics of cruise missile development and the implications related to the revolution in military affairs.

Engel notes that air-launched and sea-launched cruise missiles (ALCM/SLCM) began differently but neither would have reached full production and operation without intervention from the highest civilian levels. Engel points out that military activity is filled with political maneuvering, just like any other organizational effort. In this case, parts of the US military were not interested in developing cruise missiles because they threatened their missions and doctrine and competed for the limited funding allocated for their development.

The Israel Navy and Israel Aircraft Industry (IAI) have been developing sea-to-sea missiles, including the latest Gabriel 5 type, designed to target naval threats. The Navy has stated that these advanced missiles ensure their relative advantage and help maintain the IDF’s naval superiority. However, Houthi rebels, who are imposing a blockade in the southern Red Sea on the movement of merchant ships to and from Israel, are not seeking to engage in battles in the open sea with the Israeli or American Navy.

IN MY OPINION, former defense ministers Arens and Liberman, as well as former minister Steinitz, contributed to the understanding of modern warfare and the need to develop and equip a long-range missile system that is accurate and capable of penetrating and destroying strategic military targets. The technology for this purpose is currently advanced and progressing towards hypersonic and ballistic missiles with excellent stealth capabilities. This enables them to be launched from both land and Navy platforms. This capability also addresses the issue of air force base survivability, which is now crucial for Israel’s response to these types of scenarios.

The writer, a retired rear admiral, is the director of the Institute for Maritime Policy and Strategy in the Israeli National Center of Blue Economy and Innovation.

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JASSM Stealth Cruise Missiles Now On The Table For Ukraine: Report

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Aug 15, 2024 3:32 PM EDT

8 minute read

U.S. Air Force Photo by 1st Lt Savanah Bray

The United States is reportedly “open” to providing Ukraine with the AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile or JASSM, to arm its newly arrived F-16s , and which would provide a very powerful new long-range strike capability. The reports from Washington come around six months after Ukrainian officials stated that the country would receive an undisclosed type of air-launched cruise missile with a range of up to 300 miles for its F-16s.

Citing an unnamed official in the Biden administration, as well as two other people “familiar with internal deliberations,” Politico reported today that the U.S. government is considering whether to approve JASSM for Ukraine, but is open to the idea. Furthermore, the same sources confirm that the Pentagon is already working on how to integrate these missiles on Ukraine’s F-16s, which are upgraded older-model jets drawn from European NATO stocks.

The jets being supplied to Ukraine are to the F-16AM/BM standard, which has undergone the Mid-Life Update (MLU) program, although none of these currently employ JASSM. The only F-16 operators that today use the missile are the U.S. Air Force and Poland, operating more modern versions of the aircraft. It is likely the case that the MLU jets can accept the software needed to use JASSM, or already have it, but this may require activation or some associated hardware tweaks, which would probably be limited.

Although a final decision is reportedly yet to be made, the same Biden administration official states that the details of the transfer — including how to address the missile’s sensitive technologies — are now being worked out.

Although in service for some 20 years and already integrated on some F-16s, among other combat aircraft, JASSM is very much a high-end weapon and one that had, until now, been widely seen as less likely to be provided to Ukraine.

When the idea of transferring F-16s to Ukraine became a reality, we examined the weapons likely to be included, and judged that the JASSM was “the biggest wild card of them all.” This is on account of its complex and classified technologies, not least of which is its low-observable (stealth) characteristics that make it highly survivable, even against the latest air defense systems.

Transferring these weapons to Ukraine involves considerable technological risk, but it appears that officials are now very much considering whether that risk is worthwhile.

As well as the possibility of JASSMs, or their wreckage, ending up in Russian hands, there’s also the issue of the missile’s relatively very long range.

In its initial AGM-158A form, the JASSM has a range of around 330 miles and weighs 2,250 pounds. The extended-range AGM-158B variant, or JASSM-ER , has a publicly stated range of at least 575 miles. An even longer-range version of the JASSM is in the works, but this has not been fielded yet by the U.S. military.

Powered by a small turbojet engine, JASSM uses an inertial navigation system (INS) and GPS to find its intended target, with an imaging infrared with automatic target recognition used to ensure a high level of accuracy on the run-in to the target. The missile is designed to operate in heavily degraded GPS environments, which would be particularly relevant in Ukraine, where Russia employs intense GPS jamming , including to degrade Ukrainian-guided weapons. JASSM carries a dual-mode blast-fragmentation/penetrator warhead in the 1,000-pound class. 

Were the United States to provide Ukraine with JASSM, there would be a big question as to whether it would be permitted for use against targets within Russia’s borders. That question is thrown into sharper focus by the Ukrainian push into Russia’s Kursk region , which is now entering its second week.

For missions inside Ukraine’s borders, the weapon’s range is far in excess of the country’s needs, although this could potentially be altered to address this.

While Western sources have generally discounted the possibility of supplying JASSM to Ukraine, officials in that country have struck a more optimistic tone.

Back in February, Lt. Gen. Serhii Naev, the commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said that the country’s F-16s would receive an undisclosed type of air-launched cruise missile with a range of “300-500 kilometers” — 186 to 310 miles. Naev added that the weapons were expected to arrive in “further military aid packages,” but provided no more details. As we explored at the time , JASSM seemed to be the most likely candidate, based on this description.

Last month, a Ukrainian delegation visited Washington, reportedly with a specific request to approve the transfer of JASSM. That visit is said to have led to the issue reaching the desk of National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.

Meanwhile, in some U.S. political circles, there is growing support for giving Ukraine longer-range weapons and relaxing restrictions on their use.

Twitter screencap

For example, a group of pro-Ukraine U.S. lawmakers is calling upon the administration to permit Ukraine to launch U.S.-supplied weapons deeper into Russian territory, especially in support of the new Kursk offensive.

Should Washington be poised to hand JASSM over to Ukraine, the missile, even if supplied in its oldest form, would be a huge leap in capability for the country. In particular, it would be especially effective for deeply penetrating the dense Russian air defense overlay that sits atop occupied territories in Ukraine.

It would also not be the first time that an item of high-end weaponry was provided to Ukraine after a policy about-turn. That applies to the U.S.-supplied M1 Abrams tanks, Patriot air defense systems, and the Army Tactical Missile Systems ( ATACMS ), as well as the F-16 itself.

Meanwhile, other long-range cruise missiles have been delivered to Ukraine already, namely the U.K.-supplied Storm Shadow , and the similar French-supplied SCALP EG cruise missiles. Both have already been used to significant effect, launched by Ukrainian Su-24 Fencer strike aircraft, although stocks are limited and the JASSM may well also be required simply to keep the Ukrainian Air Force stocked with cruise missiles.

The Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG export configurations have a range of around 155 miles, while the non-export configurations are roughly double that, putting them in broadly the same class as JASSM. Neither of those European-supplied cruise missiles is currently permitted for use against targets deep within Russia.

There is also the question of how long it would take to get JASSM operational with the Ukrainian Air Force’s newly arrived F-16s. While reports suggest that studies, at least, into the integration of this missile onto Ukrainian F-16s are already underway, it would also take some significant time for pilots and maintainers to be trained to use it. At the same time, JASSM requires a significant backend infrastructure for planning missions, which in turn requires weaponeering training. Mission planning is a critical factor for JASSM, with the latest threat information needed to give it the best chance of surviving as it flies through a heavily defended area.

So far, Ukrainian F-16s have only been seen with air-to-air load-outs, with the likelihood that air defense missions will be mastered first, before adding offensive capabilities.

With Ukraine long having sought weapons with more reach, to attack high-value Russian targets like air defense systems, command posts , logistic storage sites, air defenses, and docked vessels , JASSM would be a welcome addition to its armory, as it seeks to target objectives further from the front lines.

It’s unclear at this point if Washington will decide to provide Ukraine with AGM-158s, but today’s reports are, at the very least, the strongest indication yet that the issue is very much under discussion, and JASSM-armed Ukrainian F-16s are becoming closer to reality.

Contact the author: [email protected]

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