Cruisemissiler

Cruisemissiler are guided missiles designed to deliver a warhead over long distances with high precision. They typically fly within the atmosphere for most of their trajectory, following a pre-planned path that allows low-altitude flight to avoid radar and air defenses. Most carry conventional warheads, but some systems are dual-capable of carrying nuclear payloads. Guidance and propulsion systems combine to provide extended range and accuracy.

They are usually powered by a turbojet or turbofan engine, enabling speeds from subsonic to supersonic in some modern varieties. Navigation often relies on inertial guidance complemented by satellite positioning (GPS/GLONASS) and terrain reference or terminal seekers for precision at the target. Modern variants may incorporate radar or infrared imaging for terminal guidance.

Cruisemissiler can be launched from aircraft, surface ships, submarines, and sometimes land-based launchers. They serve primarily for long-range precision strikes against ground targets, but anti-ship versions are common in naval inventories. Their stand-off range allows operators to strike from well outside defended airspace.

Historically, cruise missiles emerged in the 1940s with early air-launched and ground-launched designs and matured in the Cold War, notably the U.S. Tomahawk and Soviet Kh-55 family. In recent decades, other nations have developed subsonic and supersonic systems, such as BrahMos, Storm Shadow, Kalibr, and Exocet families, each with regional variants and payloads.

Internationally, cruise missiles are governed by arms-control regimes and military doctrine. Ground-launched cruise missiles were restricted by the INF Treaty until its termination; air-, sea-, and submarine-launched variants remain, in many cases, subject to export controls and strategic considerations.