Tomahawk Cruise Missile Scores Well In Test

A Navy Tomahawk cruise missile was launched from a submarine in the Atlantic and flew its intended course to terminate at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., the Navy announced.

The missile was launched by the USS Newport News (SSN 750) on June 28 while underway in the Atlantic sea ranges east of Jacksonville, Fla., and safely terminated on the Eglin Air Force Base test range.

Seconds after launch from the submarine’s torpedo tube, the Tomahawk missile transitioned to cruise flight, according to the Navy, and flew a fully guided 564-nautical-mile flight using global positioning satellite and digital scene matching area correlation navigation updates.

That flight lasted one hour and 17 minutes, and concluded at a target and recovery site on the Eglin range, where the missile’s parachute recovery system was activated as planned.

The missile was safely recovered and will be refurbished for future use.

The Tomahawk cruise missile is a long range, subsonic cruise missile used for land attack warfare, launched from surface ships and submarines. Designed to fly at extremely low altitudes at high subsonic speeds, the missile can be flown over evasive routes by several mission-tailored guidance systems.

Tomahawk missiles are deployed throughout the world’s oceans on numerous surface ships and submarines, including Aegis-class cruisers, guided missile destroyers, and Seawolf and Los Angeles-class submarines.

The missile is manufactured by Raytheon Co. [RTN] unit Missile Systems in Tucson, Ariz.

As in all Tomahawk flight tests, air route safety was planned in coordination with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Navy stated. For safety purposes, the Tomahawk could have been guided by commands from safety chase aircraft. The name Tomahawk is a registered trademark of the Navy.