Tomahawk missile

The BGM-109 Tomahawk Land Attack Missile (TLAM) is an American long-range, all-weather, jet-powered, subsonic cruise missile that is used by the United States Navy, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Netherlands Navy and Royal Navy in ship and submarine-based land-attack operations.

Developed at the Applied Physics Laboratory of Johns Hopkins University under James H. Walker near Laurel, Maryland, the Tomahawk emerged in the 1970s as a modular cruise missile first manufactured by General Dynamics. Early tests of the missile took place between 1983 and 1993, during which time 23 cruise missiles were tested over northern Canada under the "Canada–U.S. Test and Evaluation Program". The goal of the program was to simulate the climate and terrain similar to that of the northern Soviet Union, and to allow the North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD) to develop an anti-cruise capability. The Tomahawk aimed to fulfill the need for a medium- to long-range, low-altitude missile with diverse capabilities. Its modular design allows for compatibility with a range of warheads, including high-explosive, submunitions, and bunker-busters. The Tomahawk can use a variety of guidance systems, including GPS, inertial navigation, and terrain contour matching. Over a dozen variants and upgraded versions have been developed since the original design, including air-, sub-, and ground-launched configurations with both conventional and nuclear armaments. The Tomahawk's manufacturing history has seen several transitions. General Dynamics served as the sole supplier in the 1970s. From 1992 until 1994, McDonnell Douglas was the sole supplier of Tomahawks, producing Block II and Block III versions and remanufacturing many Tomahawks to Block III specifications. In 1994, Hughes Aircraft, having purchased General Dynamics' missile division in 1992, outbid McDonnell Douglas to become the sole supplier of Tomahawks. A joint venture between Hughes and Raytheon manufactured the missile from 1995 until Raytheon's acquisition of Hughes in 1997, solidifying their position as the sole supplier. In 2016, the US Department of Defense purchased 149 Tomahawk Block IV missiles for $202.3 million. As of 2024, Raytheon remains the sole manufacturer of non-nuclear, sea-launched Tomahawk variants.

Variants

The variants and multiple upgrades to the missile include:

• BGM-109A Tomahawk Land Attack Missile – Nuclear (TLAM-N) with a W80 nuclear warhead. Retired from service sometime between 2010 and 2013. Reports from early 2018 state that the US Navy is considering reintroducing a (yet unknown type of) nuclear-armed cruise missile into service.
• BGM-109G Gryphon Ground Launched Cruise Missile (GLCM) – with a W84 nuclear warhead; withdrawn from service in 1991 to comply with the INF Treaty.
• RGM/UGM-109B Tomahawk Anti-Ship Missile (TASM) – Anti-ship variant with active radar homing; withdrawn from service in 1994 and converted to TLAM-E Block IV version.
• BGM-109C Tomahawk Land Attack Missile – Conventional (TLAM-C Block II) with WDU-25/B unitary warhead also used on the AGM-12B Bullpup. The WDU-25/B warhead weighed 992 pounds (450 kg) and contained 378 pounds (171 kg) of Picratol and Composition H-6 high explosives. Starting in May 1993, the WDU-25/B warhead was replaced by the lighter WDU-36/B warhead weighing 690 pounds (310 kg) and filled with 265 pounds (120 kg) of PBXN-107 high explosive. The smaller warhead allowed the fuel tank to be enlarged, increasing the maximum range. This version was given the designation TLAM-C Block III.
• BGM-109D Tomahawk Land Attack Missile – Dispenser (TLAM-D) with a submunitions dispenser that carried 166 BLU-97/B Combined Effects Bomblets with 287 grams (0.633 lb) Cyclotol high explosive per munition
  • Kit 2 Tomahawk Land Attack Missile – with a unique warhead used to disable electrical grids. First used in the Gulf War.
• RGM/UGM-109E Tomahawk Land Attack Missile (TLAM-E Block IV) – improved version of the TLAM-C Block III. Also called Tactical Tomahawk, a term which now incorporates other variants as well.
• RGM/UGM-109E Block V (TLAM)
• RGM/UGM-109E Block Va (MST)
• RGM/UGM-109E Block Vb (JMEWS)
• AGM-109H/L Medium Range Air-to-Surface Missile (MRASM) – a shorter-range, turbojet powered air-launched cruise missile with conventional non-nuclear warheads intended for USAF and Navy. AGM-109H for USAF, 5.84 m (19 ft 2 in) long, with TERCOM en-route and DSMAC terminal guidance, and payload of runway cratering submunitions for use against airfields. AGM-109L for US Navy, 4.87 m (16 ft 0 in) long, with unitary warhead for use against ships or high value land targets, and imaging infra-red seeker and datalink. Never entered service, cost US$569,000 (1999).

BGM-109G Gryphon Ground Launched Cruise Missiles (GLCM) and their truck-like launch vehicles were employed at bases in Europe; they were withdrawn from service to comply with the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. Many of the anti-ship versions were converted into TLAMs at the end of the Cold War. The Block III TLAMs that entered service in 1993 can fly farther using their new turbofan engines and use Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers to strike more precisely. Block III TLAM-Cs retain the Digital Scene Matching Area Correlation (DSMAC) II navigation system, allowing three kinds of navigation: GPS-only, which allow for rapid mission planning, with some reduced accuracy, DSMAC-only, which take longer to plan but terminal accuracy is somewhat better; and GPS-aided missions that combine DSMAC II and GPS navigation for greatest accuracy. Block IV TLAMs have an improved turbofan engine that allows them to get better fuel economy and change speeds in flight. The Block IV TLAMs can loiter better and have electro-optical sensors that allow real-time battle damage assessment. The Block IVs can be given a new target in flight and can transmit an image, via satcom, immediately before impact to help determine whether the missile is on target and the likely damage from the attack.

Development History

Tomahawk

A major improvement to the Tomahawk is network-centric warfare-capabilities, using data from multiple sensors (aircraft, UAVs, satellites, foot soldiers, tanks, ships) to find its target. It will also be able to send data from its sensors to these platforms.

Block II

Tomahawk Block II variants were all tested during January 1981 to October 1983. Deployed in 1984, some of the improvements included: an improved booster rocket, cruise missile radar altimeter, and navigation through the Digital Scene Matching Area Corellator (DSMAC). DSMAC was a highly accurate rudimentary AI which allowed early low power computers to navigate and precisely target objectives using cameras on board the missile. With its ability to visually identify and aim directly at a target, it was more accurate than weapons using estimated GPS coordinates. Due to the very limited computer power of the day, DSMAC did not directly evaluate the maps, but instead would compute contrast maps and then combine multiple maps into a buffer, then compare the average of those combined images to determine if it was similar to the data in its small memory system. The data for the flight path was very low resolution in order to free up memory to be used for high resolution data about the target area. The guidance data was computed by a mainframe computer which took spy satellite photos and estimated what the terrain would appear like during low level flight. Since this data would not match the real terrain exactly, and since terrain changes seasonally and with changes in light quality, DSMAC would filter out differences between maps and use the remaining similar sections in order to find its location regardless of changes in how the ground appeared. It also had an extremely bright strobe light it could use to illuminate the ground for fractions of a second in order to find its position at night, and was able to take the difference in ground appearance into account.

Block III

Tomahawk Block III introduced in 1993 added time-of-arrival control and improved accuracy for Digital Scene Matching Area Correlator (DSMAC) and jam-resistant GPS, smaller, lighter WDU-36 warhead, engine improvements and extended missile's range.

Block IV

Block IV is the beginning of the Tactical Tomahawk (TACTOM) program.

The TACTOM program was initiated in DEC 1997 as a result of changed operational requirements from Fleet Commanders requesting a more flexible, more responsive, and more affordable missile identified in Desert Storm, Bosnia, and Desert Fox. The Block (BLK) IV All-Up-Round (AUR) (includes the missile in a canister for surface launch or in a capsule for submarine launch) was built upon the legacy of the Tomahawk Baseline Improvement Program (TBIP), but provided a missile with improved flexibility and increased responsiveness.

A Low Rate Initial Production contract was awarded to Raytheon (RTX) in October 2002. TACTOM reached Initial Operating Capability (IOC) in 2004.