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A problem with very long range ASMs is targeting: how do you make sure the target is still within the field of view of your seeker when the missile gets to the
by chipsa 4y ago
A problem with very long range ASMs is targeting: how do you make sure the target is still within the field of view of your seeker when the missile gets to the target area, and how do you make sure it's actually the target? This is a major reason why TASM was retired.
- sudosysgen 4y agoIt's not very complicated. The target is very large and slow, while the missile is very fast. I've done the math a few years ago, but with consumer-level optics you could easily search a 40km diameter area for a 300m sized optics in seconds from a distance of 300km. Beyond that, you can use datalinks with a satellite (carriers are visible all the way from geostationary orbit), as well as two different types of targeting sensors on the missile, presumably optics+radar (which the Chinese seem to be doing), and obtain a very robust targeting solution. The TASM was retired because it's really just a worse Harpoon in everything except payload. It wasn't worth putting too much work into it. It's also 10x slower than a DF-26, and speed helps a lot with targeting. Also, the TASM was pretty easy to shoot down since it was big, slow, and not very maneuvrable.