Vehiclelaunched

Vehiclelaunched refers to weapons, payloads, or systems that are deployed from a vehicle rather than from a fixed ground emplacement. In defense contexts, vehicle-launched systems include missiles, rockets, torpedoes, and unmanned aerial systems that are launched from trucks, ships, aircraft, submarines, or other mobile carriers. The defining feature is that the launch occurs from a movable platform, enabling rapid redeployment and improved survivability.

Common platforms used for vehicle-launched weapons span land, sea, and air domains. Examples include truck- or rail-mounted surface-to-surface missile launchers, shipboard missiles and gun-muid systems, air-launched missiles carried by fighters or bombers, submarine- or surface vessel-launched torpedoes, and dedicated mobile launch vehicles for ballistic or cruise missiles. Unmanned systems can also be vehicle-launched, using external hardpoints, canisters, or internal launch tubes on a carrier platform.

Launch mechanisms for vehicle-launched systems vary widely. They may employ vertical or inclined launches, canisterized or open-tube configurations, and automated or manual loading. Some platforms enable rapid fire or salvo launches, while others emphasize long-range or precision strikes from mobile positions.

Historically, mobility has driven development of vehicle-launched weapons, from rocket artillery in the early 20th century to modern mobile missile and unmanned systems. In contemporary operations, vehicle-launched capabilities contribute to flexibility, survivability, and force projection, but they also impose requirements for logistics, platform protection, and integrated targeting.

See also: mobile launcher, surface-to-air missile, submarine-launched weapons, air-launched missiles.