A vertical launching system ( VLS ) is an advanced system for holding and firing missiles on mobile naval platforms, such as surface ships and submarines . Each vertical launch system consists of a number of cells , which can hold one or more missiles ready for firing. Typically, each cell can hold a number of different types of missiles, allowing the ship flexibility to load the best set for any given mission. Further, when new missiles are developed, they are typically fitted to the existing vertical launch systems of that nation, allowing existing ships to use new types of missiles without expensive rework. When the command is given, the missile flies straight up far enough to clear the cell and the ship, then turns onto the desired course.
18-834: The Korean vertical launching system ( K-VLS or KVLS ) is a vertical launching system developed by South Korea to be deployed by the Republic of Korea Navy . It is used in the Sejong the Great-class destroyer , KSS-III submarine , and is scheduled to be added to the Daegu-class frigate . The K-VLS can deploy the Cheongung air defense missile (KM-SAM), Haegung air defense missile (K-SAAM), K745A1 Red Shark anti-submarine missile , Haeseong-II , Hyunmoo-3 land-attack cruise missiles and even SLBMs . This naval article
36-466: A cold launch system for some of its vertical launch missile systems, e.g., the Tor missile system . The UK's Common Anti-Air Modular Missile (CAMM) family of missiles utilises a similar cold-launching system, referred to as soft-vertical-launch , and actively markets the advantages of the system. Soft-launch provides the missile with a reduce interception rate allowing for shorter ranged engagements, reduces
54-464: A cold launch system, while Type 054A frigates use a hot launch system. Transporter erector launchers are wheeled or tracked land vehicles for the launch of surface-to-air and surface-to-surface missiles. In most systems the missiles are transported in a horizontal out-of-battery configuration: in order to fire, the vehicle must stop and the transport/launch tube must be raised to the vertical before firing. BAE Systems has filed patents relating to
72-461: A costly, but more space efficient option. Some warships of China's People's Liberation Army Navy use a concentric canister launch (CCL) system that can launch using both hot and cold methods in the cell module, onboard the Type 052D destroyer and the Type 055 destroyer . The universal launch system is offered for export. Older Chinese ships use single launch system: Type 052C destroyers use
90-410: A hot-launch system relatively light, small, and economical to develop and produce, particularly when designed around smaller missiles. A potential disadvantage is that a malfunctioning missile could destroy the launch tube. American surface-ship VLSs have missile cells arranged in a grid with one lid per cell and are "hot launch" systems. The engine ignites within the cell during the launch and so requires
108-638: A magazine below the main deck. In addition to greater firepower, VLS is much more damage tolerant and reliable than the previous systems and has a lower radar cross-section (RCS). The U.S. Navy now relies exclusively on VLS for its guided missile destroyers and cruisers . The most widespread VLS in the world is the Mark 41 , developed by the United States Navy . More than 11,000 Mark 41 VLS missile cells have been delivered, or are on order, for use on 186 ships across 19 ship classes, in 11 navies around
126-463: A way of venting rocket exhaust. France, Italy and Britain use a similar hot-launching Sylver system in PAAMS . The advantage of the cold-launch system is in its safety: if a missile engine malfunctions during launch, the cold-launch system can eject the missile, reducing or eliminating the threat. For this reason, Russian VLSs are often designed with a slant so that a malfunctioning missile will land in
144-586: Is 60 centimetres (24 in) long and 56 cm (22 in) wide, and each cell has its own exhaust vent. Crotale NG (VT1) missiles can be quad-packed in one cell. The primary application of the launcher has been the Aster . The Sylver, together with the Aster, is the primary component of the PAAMS naval anti-air warfare system. Using PAAMS, up to eight missiles can be launched in 10 seconds. France has developed
162-432: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about the military of South Korea is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Vertical launching system A VLS allows surface combatants to have a greater number of weapons ready for firing at any given time compared to older launching systems such as the Mark 13 single-arm and Mark 26 twin-arm launchers, which were fed from behind by
180-446: Is a vertical launching system (VLS) designed by DCNS and introduced in 2001. The basic unit of Sylver VLS is an eight-cell module fitted with two rows of 56 cm missile cells surrounding the uptake for exhaust gas, and the specifications for different models are as follows: The launcher comes in several variants, each distinguished by their height. A-35 and A-43 were developed for launching short range surface-to-air missiles ,
198-461: Is used on the Zumwalt -class destroyer . The older Mark 13 and Mark 26 systems remain in service on ships that were sold to other countries such as Taiwan and Poland. When installed on an SSN (nuclear-powered attack submarine), a VLS allows a greater number and variety of weapons to be deployed, compared with using only torpedo tubes . A vertical launch system can be either hot launch , where
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#1732787465569216-483: The IR signature of the ship and the obscurant of visibility by rendering the ship in efflux for several minutes; and most notably, the lack of hot efflux and reduced stress on the ship's structure allows for a much greater choice of launch systems, such as the lighter Mushroom Farm launcher whilst also still enabling installation into the heavier Mark 41 in a quad-pack or dual-packed configuration (4 or 2 missiles per cell) for
234-824: The A-50 for the long-range PAAMS air defense system, and the A-70 launcher for longer missiles such as the MdCN naval land attack cruise missile . The numbers refer to the approximate length of the missile which can be accommodated, in decimetres, i.e. the A-43 can hold missiles which are up to 4.3 metres (14 ft 1 in) long whilst the A-70 can accommodate missiles up to 7 metres (23 ft 0 in) long. The launchers come in eight-cell modules, except A-35 available in four-cell modules, with each eight-cell module occupying six square metres (65 sq ft) of deck space. Inner size cell
252-410: The cell. If the missile ignites in a cell without an ejection mechanism, the cell must withstand the tremendous heat generated without igniting missiles in adjacent cells. An advantage of a hot-launch system is that the missile propels itself out of the launching cell using its own engine, which eliminates the need for a separate system to eject the missile from the launching tube. This potentially makes
270-402: The missile ignites in the cell, or cold launch , where the missile is expelled by gas produced by a gas generator which is not part of the missile itself, and then the missile ignites. "Cold" means relatively cold compared with rocket engine exhaust. A hot launch system does not require an ejection mechanism but does require some way of disposing of the missile's exhaust and heat as it departs
288-556: The use of Vertical Launch missiles from modified passenger aircraft. In 2021, the Centre for Military Studies published the total number of VLS cells in use with fourteen NATO navies. The results are displayed below. Note: The above table does not include NATO navies which do not possess vertical launching systems, namely Albania, Croatia, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania and Slovenia. Sylver launcher The Sylver (système de lancement vertical)
306-410: The water instead of on the ship's deck. As missile size grows, the benefits of ejection launching increase. Above a certain size, a missile booster cannot be safely ignited within the confines of a ship's hull. Most modern ICBMs and SLBMs are cold-launched. Russia produces both grid systems and a revolver arrangement with more than one missile per lid for its cold launch system. Russia also uses
324-686: The world. This system currently serves with the US Navy as well as the Australian, Danish, Dutch, German, Japanese, Norwegian, South Korean, Spanish, and Turkish navies, while others like the Greek Navy preferred the similar Mark 48 system. The 3S-14 VLS was developed in Russia and is used in sea-based as well as land-based TEL systems such as the S-400 missile system . The advanced Mark 57 VLS
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