The Cruise Missile Guidance Problem

In airframe technology, designs have become progressively more compact, to accommodate internal and external carriage by aircraft, launch tubes on warships or torpedo tubes in submarines. Propulsion has evolved from simple pulse jets, through turbojets and liquid propellant rockets or ramjets to the current mix of: turbojets for subsonic tactical cruise missiles, turbofans for subsonic strategic cruise missiles; and ramjets or mixed turbojet/rocket designs for supersonic tactical cruise missiles. Penetration aids emerged during the 1960s as air defence systems evolved to greater potency, with low altitude terrain following or sea skimming flight profiles to hide missiles from radars and, increasingly, stealth shaping and materials to deny acquisition and tracking by air defence radars. Some Soviet cruise missiles were also equipped with track-breaking defensive jammers to defeat interception by air defence missiles. Finally, cruise missile guidance has evolved and strongly diversified over this period.