Sub-surface anti-air weapon : A game changer for Naval warfare

[Oracle]

Sub-surface anti-air weapons like IDAS (developed by German Diehl and tested on Type-212A submarine) technology is new but the potential it has can change the course of naval wars in coming decades.

Submarine missile IDAS

The IDAS project (Interactive Defence and Attack System for Submarines) is pursuing the revolutionary development of an unmatched missile system. IDAS offers submarines entirely new possibilities of weapon employment. IDAS enables submerged submarines to defend themselves against threats from the air and to precisely engage vessels as well as land targets near the coast. The submarine does not have to surface, but can launch the multi-role missile from a torpedo canister under water. An autopilot and image-processing infrared seeker provides autonomous guidance and navigation. Thanks to an innovative fiber-optic data link, the operator in the submarine is also capable of controlling the missile during the entire flight providing the opportunity of target change, correction of target impact or mission abort. This monitoring of target approach combined with the high precision of the seeker and the relatively small warhead achieves the desired effect while considerably limiting unwelcome destruction in the target´s vicinity. IDAS is the first guided missile to operate under water without a protective capsule, thus saving considerable costs and volume during storage in the submarine and enhancing tactical flexibility.

 

[Penguin]

SLAM being tested on a British diesel submarine, HMS Aeneas in 1972

Early (1970s) attempt, using Blowpipe.

SLAM - submarine surface to air missile system One of the novel features of the Israëli GAL class was the British SLAM (Submarine Launched Airflight Missile) system fitted into the sail. This consisted of a pedestal with an optical sensor and a cluster of six Blowpipe SAMs. The system was also slaved to the periscope. In order to fire the missiles the pedestal mast was raised above the water, typically with the submarine at periscope depth. The missiles were guided in flight with a crewman using a joystick to guide the missile to the target. The Blowpipe missile was a first generation shoulder-launched weapon loosely equivalent to the Redeye and GRAIL systems (i.e. a generation before Stinger). The concept was that the submarine would use these missiles to down or deter slow moving anti-submarine helicopters, particularly ones using dipping sonar which would present relatively unchallenging targets for the system. The missiles were quickly obsolete and the system was quietly removed without replacement.