Spain Selects Naval Strike Missile As Harpoon Replacement

[Zarvan]

The Spanish Navy becomes the latest customer of the NSM. The missiles will be fitted aboard F-100 and F-110 (pictured) frigates.

Spain Selects Naval Strike Missile As Harpoon Replacement​

The Spanish Navy (Armada Española) confirmed to Naval News that it has selected Kongsberg's Naval Strike Missile (NSM) as the replacement for its ageing Harpoon anti-ship missiles.​

Xavier Vavasseur 08 Sep 2022

Contacted by Naval News, the Spanish Navy confirmed the selection of the Norwegian anti-ship missile designed by Kongsberg Defense and Aerospace. The Spanish Navy Communication Department added:

“The decision was taken in a working group held to decide between 4th and 5th generation missiles. Different aspects were considered such as operational capabilities, survivability, maintenance, etc”

Spain thus becomes the 9th customer of the Naval Strike Missile, joining the navies of Norway, Poland, Malaysia, Germany, United States (for both the US Navy and USMC), Romania, Canada and Australia.

Naval News understands that three missiles were in competition: Kongsberg’s NSM, MBDA’s Exocet MM40 Block 3c and Saab RBS 15 Mk3+.

According to the Spanish Navy, the Naval Strike Missiles will be fitting on two classes of ships:

• The F-100 Álvaro de Bazán-class frigates following their mid-life update
• The future F-110 frigates

Regarding deliveries, the Spanish Navy explained that “We expect to receive the [new] missile well in advance [before] the Harpoon missile is retired from the active service around 2030”.

UPDATE: Contacted by Naval News, Kongsberg representatives confirmed the Spanish Navy’s selection.

“We have received confirmation from the Spanish Navy that they have selected the NSM as the surface-to-surface missiles to be equipped on their ships. The NSM customer base is rapidly growing, and the Spanish Navy will be the 9th customer selecting the Naval Strike Missile.”

Øyvind Kolset, EVP Missile Systems, Kongsberg

About Naval Strike Missile (NSM)​

NSM anti-ship missile during its launch phase.

The Naval Strike Missile is a long-range, precision strike weapon that seeks and destroys enemy ships at distances greater than 100 nautical miles. It uses Inertial, GPS and terrain-reference navigation and imaging infrared homing (with a target database aboard the missile).

The NSM is a very flexible system, which can be launched from a variety of platforms against a variety of targets on sea and land.

The airframe design and the high thrust-to-weight ratio give the NSM extremely good maneuverability. The missile is completely passive and has proven its excellent sea-skimming capabilities and with its advanced terminal maneuvers, it will survive the enemy air defenses. The Autonomous Target Recognition (ATR) of the seeker ensures that the correct target is detected, recognized, and hit, at sea or on land.

The NSM is a fifth-generation anti-ship missile, produced by Kongsberg and managed in the U.S. by Raytheon. NSM reached Initial Operational Capability on the Norwegian Fridtjof Nansen-class frigates and the Norwegian Skjold Class corvettes in 2012. It is also fielded by the Polish Navy (coastal defense batteries) and has been selected by the navies of Malaysia, Germany, Canada, Romania and Ausralia. NSM was also selected in 2018 as the winner of the U.S. Navy Over-The-Horizon Weapon System (OTH WS) competition and by the USMC in 2019. Its U.S. Navy designation is RGM-184A NSM Block 1.

TECHNICAL DATA​

• Speed: 0.7 – 0.9 Mach
• Weight: 407 kg (897 lbs)
• Length: 3,96 m (156 inches)
• Multi-mission: Sea and land targets
• Range: >100 nm
• Responsive: Rapid automated mission planning – short reaction time

Spain Selects Naval Strike Missile as Harpoon Replacement - Naval News

The Spanish Navy (Armada Española) confirmed to Naval News that it has selected Kongsberg's Naval Strike Missile (NSM) as the replacement for its ageing Harpoon anti-ship missiles.

www.navalnews.com