Missiles

CLASSIFICATION OF MISSILES

1. Based on launching base

 Surface-to-Surface Missile: A surface-to-surface missile is a guided projectile launched from a 

hand-held, vehicle mounted, trailer mounted or fi xed installation. It is often powered by a rocket 

motor or sometimes fi red by an explosive charge since the launch platform is stationary.

 Surface-to-Air Missile: A surface-to-air missile is designed for launch from the ground to destroy 

aerial targets like aircrafts, helicopters and even ballistic missile. These missiles are generally called 

air defence systems as they defend any aerial attacks by the enemy.

 Surface (Coast)-to-Sea Missile: A Surface (Coast)-to-Sea Missile is designed to be launched from 

land to ship in the sea as targets.

 Air-to-Air Missile: An Air-to-Air Missile is launched from an aircraft to destroy the enemy aircraft. 

The missile fl ies at a speed of 4 Mach.

 Air-to-Surface Missile: An Air-to-Surface Missile is designed for launch from military aircraft and 

strikes ground targets on land, at sea or both. The missiles are basically guided via laser guidance 

infrared guidance and optical guidance or via GPS signals. The type of guidance depends on the 

type of target.

 Sea-to-Sea Missile: Sea-to-Sea Missile is designed for launch from one ship to another ship.

 Sea-to-Surface (Coast) Missile: A Sea-to-Surface (Coast) Missile is designed for launch from ship 

to land based targets.

 Anti-Tank Missile: An Anti-Tank Missile is a guided missile primarily designed to hit and destroy 

heavily-armoured tanks and other armoured fi ghting vehicles. Anti-tank missiles could be launched 

from aircraft, helicopters, tanks and also from shoulder mounted launcher.

2. Based on Speed

 Subsonic cruise missile: Subsonic cruise missile fl ies at a speed lesser than that of sound. It 

travels at a speed of around 0.8 Mach. Example: American Tomahawk cruise missile, Harpoon 

of USA and Exocet of France.

 Supersonic cruise missile: Supersonic cruise missile travels at a speed of around 2-3 Mach i.e.; it 

travels a kilometre approximately in a second.

 Hypersonic cruise missile: Hypersonic cruise missile travels at a speed of more than 5 Mach3. Based on intended target

 Ballistic missiles: After the boost stage, ballistic missiles follow a trajectory mainly determined 

by ballistics. The guidance is for relatively small deviations from that. Ballistic missiles are largely 

used for land attack missions. Although normally associated with nuclear weapons, some 

conventionally armed ballistic missiles are in service, such as MGM-140 ATACMS. 

 Cruise missile: Cruise missiles are generally associated with land-attack operations, but also 

have an important role as anti-shipping weapons.

 They are primarily launched from air, sea or submarine platforms in both roles, although 

land-based launchers also exist.

 Anti-ship and Anti-submarine: These missile are generally use the missile in order to deliver 

another weapon system such as a torpedo or depth charge to the location of the submarine, at 

which point the other weapon will conduct the underwater phase of the mission.

 Anti-tank: it is man-portable missile proved and may be launched from aircraft, vehicles or by 

ground troops in the case of smaller weapons