Tomahawk Cruise Missile

INTRODUCTION
The Tomahawk Land Attack Missile (TLAM)
is a long range, subsonic cruise missile used
for land attack warfare, launched from U. S.
Navy surface ships and submarines.
 History
• In 1916, 
Lawrence Sperry
 patented and built
an "aerial
torpedo", a small
biplane carrying a
TNT charge,
features are
autopilot and a
barometric altitude
control. Inspired by
these experiments,
the US Army
developed a similar
flying bomb called
•During the Cold War period
both the United States and
the Soviet Union
 experimented further with
the concept, deploying early
cruise missiles from land,
submarines and aircraft. The
main outcome of the U.S.
Navy submarine missile
project was the SSM-N-8
Regulus missile, based upon
the V-1.`
•In the year
1970, General
Dynamics
introduced
medium- to long-
range, low-
altitude missile
that could be
launched from a
submerged subm
arine. This was
called
“TOMAHAWK”
 Background
•First operational use was in the Operation Desert
Storm(1991).
•Designed to fly at extremely low altitudes at high subsonic
speeds.
•Are piloted over an evasive route by several mission
tailored guidance systems.
•Digital Scene Matching Area Correlation (DSMAC) and
Global Positioning Satellite System guidance capability is
coupled to the Block II guidance systems for precision
navigation
• Because of its long range, lethality, and
extreme accuracy, Tomahawk has become
the weapon of choice for the U.S.
Department of Defense.
 General Characteristics

Primary Function: long-range subsonic cruise missile for

striking high value or heavily defended land targets.
Contractor: Raytheon Systems Company, Tucson, Ariz.
Unit Cost: approximately $569,000 (FY99 $)
Power Plant:
Block II/III TLAM-A, C & D - Williams International F107
cruise turbo-fan engine ; ARC/CSD solid-fuel booster
Block IV TLAM-E - Williams International F415 cruise turbo-
jet engine ; ARC solid-fuel booster
Length: 18 feet 3 inches (5.56 meters); with booster: 20 feet 6
inches (6.25 meters)
Weight: 2,900 pounds (1,315.44 kg); 3,500 pounds
(1,587.6kg) with booster
Diameter: 20.4 inches (51.81 cm)
Wing Span: 8 feet 9 inches (2.67 meters)
 Tomahawk Weapon System
Comprised of four major components:

•Tomahawk Missile
•Theater Mission Planning Center (TMPC)/Afloat
Planning System (APS)
•Tomahawk Weapon Control System (TWCS) for
surface ships
•Combat Control System (CCS) for submarines
 Launch

1
– 1 by Land
– 2 by Sea
– 3 by Air

2 3
 Launch system
• Ships and submarines have different launch systems. A vertical
launching system (VLS) accommodates missile stowage and
launch on ships.
• In case of submarines, missiles are launched from torpedo tubes
(with stowage in the torpedo room); in addition, some attack
submarines have Vertical launching systems, located external to
the pressure hull, which will handle both stowage and launch.
• Each missile is stored and launched from a pressurized
canister that protects it during transportation and storage and acts
as a launch tube.
• For submarine-launched missiles (called UGM-109s), after
being ejected by gas pressure (vertically via the VLS) or by water
impulse (horizontally via the torpedo tube), the missile exits the
water and a solid-fuel booster is ignited for the first few seconds of
airborne flight until transition to cruise.
• After achieving flight, the missile's wings are unfolded for lift,
turbofan engine takes control of flight.

• Over water, the Tomahawk uses GPS to follow a preset course;

once over land, the missile's guidance system is aided by 
Terrain Contour.
 Fire Control Systems
• The Fire Control Systems (FCS) on both ships and submarines
perform communications management, database
management, engagement planning, and launch control
functions.
• These systems provide the interface between the missile and
FCS for missile initialization and launch as well as
environmental protection.
Tomahawks in Action
 Working of tomahawk

GPS

TERCOM

DSMAC
 Tomahawk – GPS’ role
• This technology would be impossible without the use
of GPS guiding the missile from its launch point to
targets sometimes over 1000 miles away
• The continuing advancement in GPS and other
related technologies has dramatically decreased the
cost of a standard cruise missile.
• Cruise missiles receive an
initial thrust from a
detachable booster before
onboard systems take
over. Once airborne, it
releases its wings and
switches on navigational
and communication
systems.
• The missile is guided at
this early stage by GPS
and onboard calculations
based on its movements
since launch.
 Tomahawk – TERCOM
• TERCOM – Terrain Contour
Matching
• Tomahawk missiles carries a
3-D map of its route.
• In theory, TERCOM allows
cruise missiles to avoid
detection.
 Tomahawk - DSMAC
• DSMAC – Digital Scene
Matching Area Correlation
• Basically a search and
destroy system
• It has images of target stored
inside.
• It keeps capturing images of
objects during flight, it
strikes once the image on
board matches with the
image taken by the camera
matches.
 Tomahawk layout
• LENGTH: 5.56 meters (18ft)
• WEIGHT: 1,300kg (aprox 2,200 lbs)
• WING SPAN: 2.67 meters (nearly 9ft)
• RANGE: 1,600km
• SPEED: 880km/h (550mph)
• 1. Infrared imagery sensor
2. "DSMAC" guidance system
3. Data/Communications link
4. 1,000lb conventional warhead
5. "DSMAC" illuminator
6. Fuel cell
7. "TERCOM" terrain matching system
8. Turbojet subsonic engine

Source: BBC
 Tomahawk – Final Destination
• US military claims
missiles are 98%
accurate.
• 1,000lb warhead
detonates.
 Future Outlook
• The next generation Tomahawk cruise missile adds
the capability to reprogram the missile while in-flight
to strike any of 15 pre-programmed alternate targets
or redirect the missile to any Global Positioning
System (GPS) target coordinates
• Able to loiter over a target area, and with its on-board
camera, will allow the war fighting commanders to
assess target battle damage.
 Types of TOMAHAWK:
• There have been several variants of the BGM-109 Tomahawk employing various
types of warheads.
• AGM-109H/L Medium Range Air to Surface Missile (MRASM) - a shorter range,
turbojet powered ASM
• BGM-109A Tomahawk Land Attack Missile - Nuclear (TLAM-N) with a W80 nuclear
warhead
• BGM-109C Tomahawk Land Attack Missile - Conventional (TLAM-C) with a unitary
warhead
• BGM-109D Tomahawk Land Attack Missile - Dispenser (TLAM-D) with sub
ammunitions
• BGM-109G Gryphon Ground Launched Cruise Missile (GLCM)]]
• RGM/UGM-109B Tomahawk Anti Ship Missile (TASM) - radar guided anti-shipping
variant
• RGM/UGM-109E Tomahawk Land Attack Missile (TLAM Block IV) - improved version
of the TLAM-C
 Tactical TOMAHAWK:
• A major improvement to the Tomahawk is its 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.
It will be a part of the networked force being implemented by the Pentagon.
• ”Tactical Tomahawk” equips the TLAM with a TV-camera for battlefield observation
loitering that allows warfighting commanders to assess damage to the target and to
redirect the missile to an alternative target. Additionally the Tactical Tomahawk is
able to be reprogrammed in-flight to attack one of 16 predesignated targets with GPS
coordinates stored in its memory or to any other GPS coordinates. Also, the missile
can send data about its status back to the commander. It entered service with the US
Navy in late 2004.
• In May 2009, Raytheon Missile Systems proposed an upgrade to the Tomahawk Block
IV land-attack cruise missile that would allow it to kill or disable large, hardened
warships at 900 nautical miles (1,700 km) range.[4]
 Operators:
United States Navy:
• In the 1991 Persian Gulf War, 288
Tomahawks were launched. The first one
was fired by the cruiser USS San Jacinto on
January 17, 1991. The attack submarines 
USS Pittsburgh and USS Louisville followed.
This was repeated during the 
2003 invasion of Iraq. The United States
Navy has a stockpile of around 3,500
Tomahawk cruise missiles of all variants.
• US has been planning to retire TLAM-N
considering the mass devastation it can
produce.
 Royal navy:
•The United States agreed to sell more than 60
Tomahawks to the United Kingdom in 1995 for
use with Royal Navy nuclear submarines. The
first missiles were acquired and test-fired in
1998.
•In 2004, the UK and US governments reached
an agreement for the British to buy 64 of the
new generation of Tomahawk missile – the
Block IV or Tactical Tomahawk missile.
•The Royal Navy has recently purchased the
Block IV tomahawk which entered service as of
the 27th March 2008, three months ahead of
schedule.
•All Royal Navy submarines are currently
(as of 2010) Tomahawk capable, including
the new Astute class attack submarine.
 Advantages

•Tomahawk is the only network enabled attack missile.

•Tomahawk has the ability to change the target once it is activated.
•Tomahawk can loiter around the target and provide to the
command base the necessary information like destruction to be
caused to the target.
•Tomahawk can capture the images of the target and send it to the
command base.
•Tomahawk can make last minute weapon changes depending on
the position of the target.
•Tomahawk’s accuracy is more than all previous cruise missiles.
 Disadvantages
• The only manufacturing base is in The US of A.
•The unit cost is v high, around $569,000.
•The UK and the USA are the only countries using it.
 References
[1.] JP 1-02, DOD Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms (April 14, 2006),
http://www.dtic.mil/doctrine/jel/doddict/data/c/01434.html
[2.] Thomas G. Mahnken, The Cruise Missile Challenge (Washington, D.C.: Center for
Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, March 2005), 9-13,
http://www.csbaonline.org/4Publications/Archive/R.20050310.CruiseMiss/R.20050310.Cru
iseMiss.pdf.
[3.] World Air Distance Locator, (mapsofworld.com, 2006),
http://www.mapsofworld.com/utilities/world-airdistance-locator.htm.
[4.] National Air and Space Intelligence Center, Ballistic and Cruise Missile Threat (Wright-
Patterson AFB: National Air and Space Intelligence Center, 2006): 25,
http://www.nukestrat.com/us/afn/NASIC2006.pdf.
[5.] National Air and Space Intelligence Center, Ballistic and Cruise Missile Threat, (Wright-
Patterson AFB: National Air Intelligence Center, 1998),
http://www.fas.org/irp/threat/missile/naic/index.html.
[6.] National Air and Space Intelligence Center, Ballistic and Cruise Missile Threat, (Wright-
Patterson AFB: National Air Intelligence Center, 2000),
http://www.nukestrat.com/us/afn/NAIC2000.pdf.
[7.] “BrahMos,” BrahMos.com, May 11, 2006http://www.brahmos.com/missile_tech.html.
[8.] “Iran Test-Fires New Cruise Missile,” IranFocus.com, April 5, 2006,
http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=6601.
[9.] Russian Federation Missiles,” Softwar.net, September 30, 2005,
http://www.softwar.net/rfed.html.
QUESTIONS??
THANK YOU