)
A tactical ballistic missile (TBM) (or battlefield range ballistic missile (BRBM)) is a ballistic missile designed for short-range battlefield use. Typically, range is less than 300 kilometres (190 mi). Tactical ballistic missiles are usually mobile to ensure survivability and quick deployment, as well as carrying a variety of warheads to target enemy facilities, assembly areas, artillery, and other targets behind the front lines. Warheads can include conventional high explosive, chemical, biological, or nuclear warheads. Typically tactical nuclear weapons are limited in their total yield compared to strategic rockets.
Design
Tactical ballistic missiles fill the gap between conventional rocket artillery and longer-range short-range ballistic missiles. Tactical missiles can carry heavy payloads deep behind enemy lines in comparison to rockets or gun artillery, while having better mobility and less expense than the more strategic theatre missiles. Additionally, due to their mobility, tactical missiles are better suited to responding to developments on the battlefield.
For many nations, tactical missiles represent the upper limit of their land-based military equipment. They can provide a powerful weapon for a very economical price, and in some cases are sought to help level the field against opponents who are clearly superior in other areas of military technology. Currently, ballistic missile technology is relatively accessible to nations that may find other military technology beyond easy reach.
Ballistic missiles are still difficult to defeat on the battlefield. Newer air defense systems have improved ability to intercept tactical missiles, but still can not reliably protect assets against ballistic missile threats. This allows a moderate force of missiles to threaten a superior enemy by penetrating their air defenses better than with conventional aircraft, while providing a deeper strike than conventional artillery.
Propulsion
Early large rockets and missiles were propelled by liquid-propellant rocket engines, as the first types developed. These were replaced as soon as possible by solid fuel rocket motors. Liquid propellants involve cryogenic (liquid oxygen) or corrosive (nitric acid) oxidisers. These must be loaded before launch, delaying the rocket's time into action. This delay was a problem for large strategic missiles, but especially so for tactical.
Missiles, particularly in the Soviet Union, switched to using storable liquid propellants such as IRFNA, inhibited nitric acid. These were still hazardous to handle, but could be stored pre-loaded in the missile. This also allowed the development of single vehicle transporter erector launchers (TEL), rather than the previous convoy of carriers, launchers, fuel vehicles and service vehicles.
Western missiles adopted solid propellants instead,[i] which were inherently storable, and later Warpac missiles followed suit. Tactical missiles are now almost universally solid-fuelled, except for some satellite states using indigenous developments of the original Scud platform.
Specific TBMs
| NATO reporting name | Propellant | Range | Introduction | Withdrawal | Origin | Operators | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al-Samoud 2 | 180 km | 2001 | 2003 |  Iraq | |||
| Al-Hussein | Liquid propelled | 600-650 km | 1987 | 1991 | Iraq | ||
| Blue Water | 1960 (first flight) | cancelled 1962 |  United Kingdom | ||||
| MGM-140 ATACMS | 300 km | 1986 | 2007 (program terminated, missile remains in service) |  United States |  Bahrain  Greece  Taiwan  South Korea  Turkey  United Arab Emirates | ||
| MGM-52 Lance | liquid | 120 km | 1972 | 1992 | United States | .svg.png){kind=small} Belgium  West Germany  Israel  Italy  Netherlands United Kingdom | |
| PGM-11 Redstone | 92.5km-323 km | 1958 | 1964 | USA | |||
| MGM-18 Lacrosse | 19 km | 1959 | 1964 | USA | |||
| WS-1 | 60–180 km | ≈1990 |  China | ||||
| WS-2 / WS-3 | 70–200 km | ≈2004 | China | ||||
| DTI-1 | 60–180 km |  Thailand | |||||
| Grom (missile system) | 280–500 km |  Ukraine | |||||
| Shaurya | two stage solid | 700 km | 2011 |  India | |||
| Prahaar | solid | 150-200 km | 2011 | India | |||
| Pragati | solid | 170 km | 2013 | India | |||
| Pralay | solid | 500 km | TBD | India | |||
| Ghaznavi (missile) | 290-320 km | 2004 |  Pakistan | ||||
| Nasr/Hatf IX | 70 km | 2013 | Pakistan | ||||
| Abdali/Hatf-II | 180 km | 2002 | Pakistan | ||||
| Hatf-I | 70 km | 1990 | Pakistan | ||||
| Hatif-1A | 100 km | 1990 | Pakistan | ||||
| Hatif-1B | 100 km | 1990 | Pakistan | ||||
| Sky Spear | 120-300 km | 2001 | Taiwan | ||||
| J-600T Yıldırım | 150–900 km | 1998 | Turkey | ||||
| TOROS | 100–160 km | Turkey | |||||
| Bora | 280 km | 2017 | Turkey | ||||
| T-300 Kasırga | 100-120km | Turkey | |||||
| R-11 Zemlya | Solid |  Soviet Union | |||||
| 2K1 Mars | FROG-2 | Solid | 7-18 km | Soviet Union | |||
| Scud A-D | SS-1 Scud | liquid | 180-700 km | 1953 | Soviet Union | ||
| OTR-21 Tochka | SS-21 Scarab | 70–185 km | 1975 | Soviet Union |  Armenia  Azerbaijan  Belarus  Bulgaria  Kazakhstan  North Korea  Russia Ukraine  Syria  Yemen Former:  Czechoslovakia Czech Republic  East Germany Germany  Lithuania  Poland  Slovakia Soviet Union | ||
| OTR-23 Oka | SS-23 Spider | 500km | 1979 | 1987 | Soviet Union | ||
| 2K6 Luna | Frog-3, Frog-5 | 10–50 km | 1960 | 1982 | Soviet Union | .svg.png){kind=small} Afghanistan  Algeria  Cuba East Germany  Egypt Iraq .svg.png){kind=small} Libya North Korea Poland  Romania Soviet Union Syria Yemen .svg.png){kind=small} Yugoslavia | |
| 9K52 Luna-M | Frog-7 | 70 km | 1964 | Soviet Union | Algeria  Afghanistan Belarus Egypt  Libya North Korea Russia Syria Ukraine Yemen Former Bulgaria Cuba Czechoslovakia East Germany  Hungary Iraq  Kuwait  Lebanon Poland Romania  South Yemen Soviet Union Yugoslavia | ||
| LORA | 400 km[1] | 2005 | Israel | ||||
| KN-02 Toksa | 120-160 km | 2008 | North Korea | ||||
| KN-25 | 380 km | 2019 | North Korea | ||||
| 9K720 Iskander | SS-26 Stone | 400-500 km | 2006 | Russia | |||
| Predator Hawk | 300 km | 2016 | Israel | ||||
| KTSSM | 120 km | 2019 | South Korea | ||||
| BRE8 King Dragon/Fire Dragon | 280-300 km | 2014? | China | ||||
| Burkan-1 | 800 km | 2016 | Yemen | ||||
| al-Najm al-Thaqib-1 | 45 km | 2015 | Yemen | ||||
| al-Najm al-Thaqib-2 | 75 km | 2015 | Yemen | ||||
| Fajr-5 | Solid propelled | 180 km | 1990s |  Iran | Syria Yemen Iraq Lebanon | ||
| Shahab-1 | 350 km | 1987 | ~2016 | Iran | |||
| Shahab-2 | liquid propelled | 500 km | 1990 | 2016 | Iran | ||
| Fateh-110 | Solid propelled | 300 km | 2002 | Iran | Syria Lebanon | ||
| Fateh-313 | Solid propelled | 500 km | 2015 | Iran | |||
| Qiam 1 | Liquid propelled | 800 km | 2010 | Iran | Yemen | ||
| Zelzal-1 | Solid propelled | 160 km | 1990 | Iran | |||
| Zelzal-2 | Solid propelled | 210 km | 1998 | Iran | Syria Yemen Lebanon | ||
| Zelzal-3 | Solid propelled | 200-250 km | 2007 | Iran | Syria | ||
| Naze'at 6-H | Solid propelled | 80-100 km | 1980's | Iran | |||
| Naze'at 10-H | Solid propelled | 100-130 km | 1980's | Iran |
See also
Notes
- ^ The liquid-fuelled MGM-52 Lance was one exception, remaining in service until the end of the Cold War.
References
- ^ Israel Aerospace tests long-range LORA missile 20 Jun, 2017 12:36 Globes correspondent