The Standoff Land Attack Missile or SLAM is an over-the-horizon, all-weather cruise missile which grew out of the United States Navy's Harpoon anti-ship missile in the 1970s.
Contents |
The Original SLAM Missile
It is now difficult to see any visual similarities between the SLAM-ER and Harpoon missiles. However, the original SLAM very closely resembled the Harpoon because it used most of the same components. This helped reduce development costs and allowed the system to be developed within weeks. The original SLAM missile was developed at extremely short notice during the Gulf War to meet emergency requirements. The original SLAM very closely resembled the Harpoon, but was longer. It was notable for requiring two aircraft to employ it, ie one to launch the missile and another to provide the data-link. The longer length of the original SLAM compared to Harpoon meant that it flew in a slightly nose-up attitude whilst approaching the target. A number of SLAM missiles were successfully fired at Iraqi coastal targets during the Gulf War.
The Current SLAM Missile
In its current incarnation, the SLAM-ER (expanded response), it is capable of attacking land and sea targets automatically, at long-range (150+ miles), and can also be controlled remotely from the air. It relies on military-grade GPS and infrared imaging for navigation. It can strike both moving and stationary targets. The cost of a single SLAM-ER is USD $720,000.
Variants
- AGM-84E - Basic SLAM
- AGM-84H - SLAM-ER
- AGM-84K - Internally improved AGM-84H
- SLAM-ER ATA - Version with autonomous target acquisition capability
See also
- Time.com spec sheet.
- Boeing SLAM-ER
