| Typhon Mid-Range Capability (MRC) missile system | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Transporter erector launcher |
| Place of origin | United States |
| Service history | |
| In service | 2023–present |
| Used by | US Army |
| Specifications | |
| Engine | HEMTT |
The Mid-Range Capability (MRC), or Typhon, is a US Army transporter erector launcher for Standard SM-6 and Tomahawk missiles. [1] [2] [3] It was originally developed as the Strategic Mid-range Fires System (SMRF), formerly known as the Midrange Capabilities System (SMC). [4]
Typhon was originally developed by the Army as the Strategic Mid-range Fires System (SMRF), formerly known as the Midrange Capabilities System (MCS), as part of the service's Long Range Precision Fires program. [3] Typhon was designed to strike targets beyond the range of the Army's Precision Strike Missile, but shorter than the Long Range Hypersonic Weapon system using modified SM-6 and Tomahawk missiles. [4] The Army originally planned for the first SMRF battery to be fielded in Q4 FY2023, with three additional batteries to follow in the subsequent year. [4] In 2023, the Army successfully launched an SM-6 missile from a Typhon launcher; followed by the successful launch of a Tomahawk missile from a Typhon launcher assigned to 1st MDTF on June 27, 2023. [4]
In April 2024, the Army operationally deployed Typhon batteries from the 1st MDTF to the Philippines. The battery deployed from Joint Base Lewis-McChord via a U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster to an unidentified airfield in Northern Luzon for the Salaknib 2024 joint military exercises. [5] [4] According to U.S. Army officials, from that position in Luzon, Typhon's missiles could cover not only the entire Luzon Strait but also reach the Chinese coast and various People’s Liberation Army bases in the South China Sea. [5] According to Philippines defense officials, the system was not used in live-fire exercises, but Philippine troops were trained on how to handle and maintain the missile system. [6] The system was also employed during the Balikatan 24 exercises. [4] [6] On July 4, 2024, the Philippines announced that the system would be withdrawn from the country "in the next several months," but did not cite a specific reason why. [6] [7]
A second battery was activated in January 2024 and designated as D Battery, 5th Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery Regiment, part of the 1st MDTF out of JBLM. [4]
On 10 July 2024, the White House published a joint statement from the United States and Germany which announced that in 2026 the US will begin episodic deployments in Germany of long-range fires. It states that these units will "have significantly longer range than current land-based fires in Europe" and will include the SM-6 and the Tomahawk, indicating that the deployment will include the MRC. [8]
SMRF batteries consist of four Typhon launchers and a battery operations center, supported by a number of prime mover trucks, trailers, generators, and other support vehicles. [4] An SMRF battery forms part of the Strategic Fires Battalion of the Army's regionally aligned Multi-domain Task Force structure. [4]
The FY 2025 budget allocated funds to procure thirty-two Tactical Tomahawks (TACTOMs) and MK14 canisters, an additional Typhon battery, and ground support equipment to include one Battery Operations Center (BOC), four launcher Payload Deployment Systems (PDS), one Reload Capability, and one BOC Support Vehicle, [and] associated Government Furnished Equipment, and program management costs. [4] Total FY 2025 funding for the system reached $183 million for RDT&E, and $233 million for procurement, with an undisclosed number of units ordered. [4]
While the Army originally planned to only develop four SMRF batteries, with one battery allocated to each MDTF, it appears to have deviated from this plan with two batteries currently assigned to 1st MDTF as of July 2024. [4] The Army has noted that combatant commanders may adjust the allocation of batteries between MDTFs to be more than one each, if required. [4]
The Lockheed Martin Mk 70 Mod 1 is a containerised system containing four strike-length cells from the Mk 41 vertical launch system mounted in the footprint of a 40-foot ISO container. [3] In addition to the Typhon system, the Mk 70 Mod 1 has been tested aboard ship on USS Savannah (LCS-28). [9]
The US Army’s Typhon launcher is a variant of the MK 70 PDS with some Army-specific modifications. [10]
Compatible with every missile currently integrated into the MK.41 VLS [11] , plus Patriot PAC-3 [12]
The RUR-5 ASROC is an all-weather, all sea-conditions anti-submarine missile system. Developed by the United States Navy in the 1950s, it was deployed in the 1960s, updated in the 1990s, and eventually installed on over 200 USN surface ships, specifically cruisers, destroyers, and frigates. The ASROC has been deployed on scores of warships of many other navies, including Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, Taiwan, Greece, Pakistan and others.
The BGM-109 TomahawkLand Attack Missile (TLAM) is a long-range, all-weather, jet-powered, subsonic cruise missile that is primarily used by the United States Navy and Royal Navy in ship and submarine-based land-attack operations.
The Hydra 70 rocket is a 2.75-inch (70 mm) diameter fin-stabilized unguided rocket used primarily in the air-to-ground role. It can be equipped with a variety of warheads, and in more recent versions, guidance systems for point attacks. The Hydra is widely used by US and allied forces, competing with the Canadian CRV7, with which it is physically interchangeable.
The SM-65 Atlas was the first operational intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) developed by the United States and the first member of the Atlas rocket family. It was built for the U.S. Air Force by the Convair Division of General Dynamics at an assembly plant located in Kearny Mesa, San Diego.
The Arleigh Burke class of guided-missile destroyers (DDGs) is a United States Navy class of destroyer centered around the Aegis Combat System and the SPY-1D multi-function passive electronically scanned array radar. The class is named for Admiral Arleigh Burke, an American destroyer officer in World War II and later Chief of Naval Operations. With an overall length of 505 to 509.5 feet, displacement ranging from 8,300 to 9,700 tons, and weaponry including over 90 missiles, the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are larger and more heavily armed than many previous classes of guided-missile cruisers.
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty was an arms control treaty between the United States and the Soviet Union. US President Ronald Reagan and Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev signed the treaty on 8 December 1987. The US Senate approved the treaty on 27 May 1988, and Reagan and Gorbachev ratified it on 1 June 1988.
The UGM-133A Trident II, or Trident D5 is a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), built by Lockheed Martin Space in Sunnyvale, California, and deployed with the United States and Royal Navy. It was first deployed in March 1990, and remains in service. The Trident II Strategic Weapons System is an improved SLBM with greater accuracy, payload, and range than the earlier Trident C-4. It is a key element of the U.S. strategic nuclear triad and strengthens U.S. strategic deterrence. The Trident II is considered to be a durable sea-based system capable of engaging many targets. It has payload flexibility that can accommodate various treaty requirements, such as New START. The Trident II's increased payload allows nuclear deterrence to be accomplished with fewer submarines, and its high accuracy—approaching that of land-based missiles—enables it to be used as a first strike weapon.
A submarine-launched cruise missile (SLCM) is a cruise missile that is launched from a submarine. Current versions are typically standoff weapons known as land-attack cruise missiles (LACMs), which are used to attack predetermined land targets with conventional or nuclear payloads. Anti-ship cruise missiles (ASCMs) are also used, and some submarine-launched cruise missiles have variants for both functions.
The M270 multiple launch rocket system is an American armored self-propelled multiple launch rocket system.
The RIM-162 Evolved SeaSparrow Missile (ESSM) is a development of the RIM-7 Sea Sparrow missile used to protect ships from attacking missiles and aircraft. ESSM is designed to counter supersonic maneuvering anti-ship missiles. ESSM also has the ability to be "quad-packed" in the Mark 41 Vertical Launch System, allowing up to four ESSMs to be carried in a single cell.
The Field Artillery Branch is the field artillery branch of the United States Army. This branch, alongside the Infantry and Cavalry branches, was formerly considered to be one of the "classic" combat arms branches, but is today included within the "Maneuver, Fires and Effects" (MFE) classification, in accordance with current U.S. Army organizational doctrine.
Hyunmoo is a series of cruise and ballistic missiles developed by South Korea.
The Iowa-class battleships are the most heavily armed warships the United States Navy has ever put to sea, due to the continual development of their onboard weaponry. The first Iowa-class ship was laid down in June 1940; in their World War II configuration, each of the Iowa-class battleships had a main battery of 16-inch (406 mm) guns that could hit targets nearly 20 statute miles (32 km) away with a variety of artillery shells designed for anti-ship or bombardment work. The secondary battery of 5-inch (127 mm) guns could hit targets nearly 9 statute miles (14 km) away with solid projectiles or proximity fuzed shells, and was effective in an anti-aircraft role as well. Each of the four battleships carried a wide array of 20 mm and 40 mm anti-aircraft guns for defense against enemy aircraft.
The RIM-66 Standard MR (SM-1MR/SM-2MR) is a medium-range surface-to-air missile (SAM), with a secondary role as an anti-ship missile, developed for the United States Navy (USN). A member of the Standard Missile family of weapons, the SM-1 was developed as a replacement for the RIM-2 Terrier and RIM-24 Tartar that were deployed in the 1950s on a variety of USN ships. The RIM-67 Standard (SM-1ER/SM-2ER) is an extended range version of this missile with a solid rocket booster stage.
The RIM-174 or AIM-174 Standard Extended Range Active Missile (ERAM), or Standard Missile 6 (SM-6), is a missile in current production for the United States Navy. It was designed for extended-range anti-air warfare (ER-AAW) purposes, providing capability against fixed and rotary-wing aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, anti-ship cruise missiles in flight, both over sea and land, and terminal ballistic missile defense. It can also be used as a high-speed anti-ship missile. The missile uses the airframe of the earlier SM-2ER Block IV (RIM-156A) missile, adding the active radar homing seeker from the AIM-120C AMRAAM in place of the semi‑active seeker of the previous design. This will improve the capability of the Standard missile against highly agile targets and targets beyond the effective range of the launching vessels' target illumination radars. Initial operating capability was planned for 2013 and was achieved on 27 November 2013. The SM-6 is not meant to replace the SM-2 series of missiles but will serve alongside and provide extended range and increased firepower. It was approved for export in January 2017.
The Mark 41 Vertical Launching System is a shipborne missile canister launching system which provides a rapid-fire launch capability against hostile threats. The Vertical Launch System (VLS) concept was derived from work on the Aegis Combat System.
The DDG(X) or Next-Generation Guided-Missile Destroyer program of the United States Navy aims to develop a class of surface combatants to succeed 22 Flight II Ticonderoga-class cruisers and 28 Flight I/II Arleigh Burke-class destroyers. The program is the culmination of the Large Surface Combatant (LSC) initiative that followed the cancellation of CG(X) and curtailing of the procurement of the Zumwalt-class destroyers. The ships will become the principal large surface combatants of the U.S. Navy. Compared to their predecessors, they will incorporate more powerful sensors and have more room and weight margin for growth.
Aegis system equipped vessels (ASEV) or (Japanese: イージス・システム搭載艦) are a pair of ballistic missile defense (BMD) warships under construction to be operated by the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) as dedicated sea-based BMD platforms, serving as an alternative to Japan's now-cancelled land-based Aegis Ashore BMD system.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)