How is the 'launcher and forget' weapon other than 'launch and run'?

"Launch and forget" weapons are still considered the future of the world military, though they have been around for a long time.

What are launch and forget weapons and launch and escape weapons?

Fire and Forget Weapons (Fire and Forget Weapons) are precision control weapons capable of finding the target on their own without any external intervention.

Thanks to this advantage, immediately after launching weapons, carriers - aircraft (aircraft, vehicles, cannons .) can immediately maneuver to find another target or avoid the enemy's strike.

Launch and forget weapons are equipped with "brains" which are electronic computers used to detect and identify targets as well as to guide and control weapons to the target.

Moreover, due to the combination of multiple transmission methods (radar, infrared .) they are capable of operating in all weather conditions with a high probability of landing and can be launched from the range of direct defensive fire of enemy.

It is also important to distinguish this weapon from the launch and leave weapons (Launch and Leave Weapons) . Launch and run weapons also allow the mobile carrier to launch immediately, but requires irradiation of the target indicator (by laser, radar .) from another source until it hits the target.

Whereas thanks to the support of computer carrying, weapons launched and forgotten do not require external impact.

The BGM-109 Tomahawk surface-to-air cruise missile is a typical forgetting and launching weapon.(Photo: Naval Today).

History of launching weapons and forgetting

The 1970s saw an unrelenting increase in the probability of a target being hit. Up to the 1980s was the decade of goal discovery technology. As a result, aircraft became more vulnerable to destruction during the attack.

One of the secrets to survival is to hit the enemy and promptly evade. But to do that, there must be appropriate weapons systems. It is the context that leads to the concept and weapons systems called launch and escape weapons, launch and forget.

The concept of launching and forgetting was first introduced in the US in the late 1960s. From that time in the United States, there was a program to create anti-tank missiles that could launch and forget to equip helicopters.

In 1971, the United States successfully tested the laser tracked missile and in 1973 invested in the development of a modular anti-tank missile, the missile capable of using many other types of navigation equipment. each other (laser, infrared, radar .) that is the Hellfire rocket.

According to preliminary data, the AGM-114 Hellfire rocket weighs 45.4 - 49 kg; Range of 500 - 8,000 m (can be up to 20 km if fired from a jet). In fact, with the laser tracking system, missiles can only be launched with the launch device, which is the launch and escape weapon.

AGM-114 Hellfire anti-tank missile.(Photo: Wikipedia).

In 1978, the United States focused on the WASP program, which is an aerial anti-tank missile research program capable of finding itself on target.

The rocket will carry a radar probe that works in the millimeter range, works well in all weather conditions, can launch multiple rockets at a time, each missile is individually programmed to attack certain targets. They are considered true launch and forget weapons.

The rapid development of advanced technology industries, especially of electronic technology, is the premise for the development of precision control weapons in general, as well as those of launch and forget weapons in particular.

The electronics industry now allows the manufacture of navigation devices and sensors that are small enough to even fit in artillery shells.

However, another difficult problem is distinguishing the characteristic signs of the target from the background of other objects. This issue was resolved around the mid to late 1980s.

AGM-88 HARM anti-radar missile.(Photo: Wikipedia).

The first US-launched and forgotten weapon was in 1984 again in Libya, which was the HARM (High-speed Anti-Radiation Missile) anti-radar missile.

HARM has a much higher speed than the Shrike rocket used in Vietnam, and it can remember the exact coordinates of the target after the radar station shutdown.

During the Gulf War, in addition to HARM missiles, there were other launch and forget weapons deployed as British anti-radar TLAM missiles, and especially, the Tomahawk cruise missiles.

It is forecasted that in the short term, the number of Launched and Forgotten Weapons will increase rapidly and their prices will be much more comfortable. This is considered a key weapon of future wars.

According to Business