AIR TO SURFACE MISSILES

STORM SHADOW / SCALP EG

 

Eurofighter Typhoon carrying two Storm Shadow missiles on each wing - second pylon from the centre

Storm Shadow is an Anglo-French air-launched cruise missile, manufactured by MBDA and used by France, Italy and the United Kingdom.

 

Storm Shadow is the British name for the weapon; in French service it is called SCALP EG (Emploi Général, meaning General Purpose). The SCALP EG, is essentially the same missile but uses a different interface to attach to the parent aircraft.
 

 

The missile is based on the earlier MBDA Apache anti-runway missile, and differs in that it carries a warhead, rather than submunitions

The stealthy missile has a range in excess of 150 mi (250 km), is powered by a turbojet at Mach 0.8 and can be carried by the Tornado GR4, Italian Tornado IDS, Eurofighter Typhoon, Dassault Mirage 2000 and Dassault Rafale aircraft. The F-35 Lightning II will also carry the missile once the aircraft enters service. The BROACH warhead features an initial penetrating charge to clear soil or enter a bunker, then a variable delay fuse to control detonation of the main warhead. The missile weighs about 1,300 kg has a maximum body diameter of 1 m and a wingspan of 3 m. Intended targets are command, control and communications; airfield facilities; port facilities; AMS/ammunition storage; ships/submarines in port; and bridges.

It is a fire and forget missile, programmed before launch. Once launched, the missile cannot be controlled, its target information changed or be self-destroyed. Mission planners programme the missile with the target air defences and target. The missile follows a path semi-autonomously, on a low flight path guided by GPS and terrain matching to the area of the target.

Close to the target, the missile bunts, climbing to an altitude intended to achieve the best probability of target identification and penetration. During the bunt, the nose cone is jettisoned to allow a high resolution infrared camera to observe the target area (the bunt enlarges the field of vision). The missile then tries to locate its target based upon its targeting information. If it can not, and there is a high risk of collateral damage, it will fly to a crash point instead of risking inaccuracy.
 

STORM SHADOW / SCALP EG Specifications
Type Conventionally armed stand off missile (CASOM)
Manufacturer MBDA
Weight 1,300kg
Warhead 450kg BROACH (Bomb Royal Ordnance Augmented CHarge)
Length 5.1m
Diameter 0.166m
Wingspan 3m (Fins deployed)
Performance Speed Mach 0.8+, range > 250km, guidance inertial, GPS and Terpom and infrared imagery homing head
Propulsion Turbomeca Microturbo TRI 60-30 turbojet, producing 5.4kN thrust