A U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class destroyer fired the Naval Strike Missile (NSM) during the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) military exercises off the coast of Hawaii, the service ultimately confirmed.

The U.S. Navy released a statement on Oct. 23, 2024, saying: “Among the numerous fleet activities during the recent Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise in Hawaii was a milestone achievement by the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division (NSWC PHD) – the first demonstration launch of a Naval Strike Missile (NSM) from a U.S. Navy destroyer.”

The USS Fitzgerald participated in a sinking exercise (SINKEX) off the coast of Hawaii on July 18 during the multinational RIMPAC exercises. The missile was fired at a decommissioned amphibious ship located about 50 nautical miles off the coast of Kauai. Although reports of the NSM shooting had previously surfaced online, confirmation was awaited by the US Navy.

In order for the ship to fire the Naval Strike Missile, the USS Fitzgerald was equipped with the first Over-the-Horizon (OTH) Weapon System, a long-range surface-to-surface warfare system that fires NSMs.

The main components of this system are the operator interface console, the launcher and a navigation adapter necessary for the system to work with the destroyer.

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The service said the first over-the-horizon (OTH) weapons system was installed on the destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) by NSWC PHD and its partners on a tight schedule.

“We expected many hurdles due to the compressed schedule, but everyone came together to accomplish this monumental event,” said Todd Jenkins, director of platform integration at NSWC PHD in San Diego.

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Following the installation of the OTH, NSWC PHD conducted crew training and assisted with system testing along the way. “USS Fitzgerald launched its first NSM from OTH. “The NSM successfully searched the target area, discovered and prosecuted the target,” the US Navy’s official statement said.

The USA has equipped its Independence-class littoral combat ships with the NSM. One of these ships, the USS Gabrielle Giffords, fired a Naval Strike Missile at a SINKEX target ship in the Pacific in October 2019.

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The US Marine Corps will also use the NSM as part of the Navy/Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS), which allows Marines to fire anti-ship missiles from land by deploying an NSM firing unit on an unmanned mobile launch platform station Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV).

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The latest confirmation comes as the Navy looks for ways to improve its missile payloads and launch options to increase its firepower amid the looming threat of a full-scale war with China in the Indo-Pacific.

A long-range stealthy anti-ship missile such as the NSM would be critical to defeat the sophisticated Anti-Access/Area Denial (A2/AD) along the Chinese coast, which includes several high-precision land-attack cruise missiles (LACMs) and anti-ship Cruise missiles (ASCMs) on various air, naval and ground platforms.

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The NSM provides the ship with over-the-horizon attack capability and allows the crew to track and eliminate incoming anti-ship missiles from a safer distance.

In addition, the missile will be capable of destroying a Chinese missile, which would be particularly useful against close-range turret-type weapon systems such as: B. Phalanx CIWS or the Chinese Type 730, which typically fire in predicted directions.

Additionally, the integration of the NSM on the Arleigh Burke-class ship is significant as it is consistent with the overall U.S. strategy of accumulating a stockpile of anti-ship missiles.

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What is the Naval Strike Missile (NSM)?

The Naval Strike Missile (NSM), developed by the Norwegian company Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace (KDA), is an anti-ship and land attack missile.

Raytheon has partnered with Kongsberg Defense Aerospace to produce the NSM launchers in the United States and is also leveraging its extensive supply base to produce the rocket and other parts in the country.

With a range of approximately 100 miles, the NSM is a subsonic, sea-skimming, precision cruise missile designed primarily to destroy enemy ships. It is a stealthy design that uses an image infrared seeker and GPS-assisted inertial navigation system (INS) guidance. The former is used to reach a general target region while the latter is used for the final attack on the target.

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The weapon can automatically distinguish between the intended target and other objects using an internal database of representative ship types. This gives it a high level of precision and significantly reduces its vulnerability to electronic warfare tactics and countermeasures.

Due to its passive nature, the seeker is not susceptible to interference from radio frequency electronic warfare. Additionally, in its final phase of flight, the NSM performs erratic movements to avoid nearby enemy defense systems.

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The NSM was built with a smaller radar signature to allow it to attack in sea-skimming mode near the surface – essentially below the aperture range of many ship radars.

The missile is propelled to its target at high subsonic speeds by a turbojet sustainer engine after being launched into the air by a solid rocket booster that is jettisoned upon burnout. This allows the multi-purpose explosive/fragmentation warhead to do its job, which in the case of a ship target means hitting the ship at or near the waterline.

Some experts believe the U.S. Navy could swap the Harpoons for the NSM in the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, which would also give the service a standoff capability, albeit with a smaller warhead than the Harpoon.

There is widespread belief that the introduction of a new anti-ship missile would reduce dependence Given China's enormous “home advantage” and, conversely, the US's “away disadvantage” in the event of a potential conflict, the already vulnerable naval and air forces are over Taiwan.

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The rocket has attracted widespread attention worldwide. For example, the Royal Australian Navy's HMAS Sydney successfully tested the NSM during RIMPAC 2024. The ship reportedly simulated the sinking of the former USS Tarawa LHA1.

At the time, reports indicated that the NSM had replaced the aging Harpoon weapons system aboard HMAS Sydney and would eventually be introduced on the remaining destroyers.

Likewise, the Norwegian frigate HNoMS Otto Sverdrup fired an NSM missile at a decommissioned ship in the Norwegian Sea in June 2023.

Current operators of the rocket include Australia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, the United Kingdom, the United States and Belgium. Several other countries, including Canada, Germany, Indonesia, Latvia, Malaysia, Romania and Spain, are in various stages of purchasing the rocket.