US develops anti-ship stealth missile to deal with Chicom threat

Forbes:
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The most immediate focus of Navy development efforts is an initiative backed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency called the Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile, or LRASM. Built by Lockheed Martin ..., LRASM adapts a stealthy cruise missile already carried on U.S. Air Force bombers and fighters for anti-ship missions. In its extended-range Air Force version, the missile has a reach approaching 600 miles.

The Navy isn’t saying how far LRASM can reach once adapted for anti-ship missions, but it’s a safe bet it can cover the entire area between the Chinese mainland and the chain of islands off China’s coast, stretching from the northern Philippines through Taiwan to the Japanese archipelago. This “first island chain” occupies an important place in Chinese military strategy because it defines the area within which Beijing believes it must dominate in the event of an east-west war.

The U.S. Navy aims to turn the tables on the Chinese navy by transforming Beijing’s planned keep-out area into a space from which it cannot escape into the sanctuary of the limitless Pacific. It’s analogous with the “containment” strategy that Washington pursued during the Cold War. LRASM is ideally suited to dominating the chokepoints in the first island chain so that Chinese naval might is bottled up close to home – and then, if necessary, destroyed.

So what makes the Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile ideal for this purpose? First, it is stealthy; Chinese naval radars can’t see it, so they can’t intercept it. Second, it has greater range than legacy anti-ship missiles, enabling U.S. forces to launch from beyond the reach of Chinese weapons. Third, it can be launched from numerous “platforms” – Air Force bombers, carrier-based fighters, vertical-launch systems installed in warships, canisters on the deck, and even trucks on land. Fourth, once it is launched it operates autonomously, finding and targeting the most vulnerable points on hostile warships. Fifth, it is designed to operate effectively even when GPS signals and communications links are being jammed, thanks to a precision routing and guidance sensor built by BAE Systems.
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There is much more.

The Chinese "carrier killer" missiles are meant to deny access to their coastal waters.  I suspect the Aegis system is designed to deal with that threat too.  The US missiles could destroy Chinese ships and because of their stealth characteristics, a traditional missile defense system should be ineffective.

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