RIM-162 ESSM

RIM-162 Evolved SeaSparrow Missile (ESSM)
Type	Medium-range surface-to-air missile
Place of origin	United States
Service history
In service	February 2004 aboard USS Chafee
Used by	Australia, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Thailand, Turkey and the US
Production history
Manufacturer	Raytheon
Unit cost	US$1.447m(FY2014)
Produced	September 1998
No. built	2000th missile delivered 2 August 2012
Specifications
Weight	620 lb (280 kg)
Length	12 ft (3.66 m)
Diameter	10 in (254 mm)
Warhead	86 lb (39 kg) blast-fragmentation
Detonation mechanism	Proximity fuze
Engine	Mk 143 Mod 0 solid fuel rocket
Operational range	27nm+ (50km+)
Speed	Mach 4+
Guidance system	Mid-course update datalink Terminal semi-active radar homing
Launch platform	Mk 41 VLS (RIM-162A/B) Mk 48 VLS (RIM-162C) Mk 56 VLS Mk 29 box launcher (RIM-162D)

The RIM-162 Evolved SeaSparrow Missile (ESSM) is a development of the RIM-7 Sea Sparrow missile used to protect ships from attacking missiles and aircraft. ESSM is designed to counter supersonic maneuvering anti-ship missiles. ESSM also has the ability to be "quad-packed" in the Mark 41 Vertical Launch System, allowing up to four ESSMs to be carried in a single cell.

The original Sea Sparrow was an expedient design intended to provide short-range defensive fire in a system that could be deployed as rapidly as possible. In the years after its introduction, it was upgraded to follow improvements being made in the air-to-air models used by the US Navy and US Air Force. The ultimate version in this line of weapons was the R model, which introduced a new dual-seeker homing system and many other upgrades. However, the AIM-120 AMRAAM offered higher performance from a missile that was smaller and lighter, and development of the Sparrow ended in the 1990s. This left only the Sea Sparrow using the basic platform, and it no longer had to fit on aircraft. So instead of simply using the P and R models as they were, it was decided to dramatically upgrade the weapon. The ESSM emerged as a completely new weapon, common only in name with the original, although using all of the same support equipment allowing it to be fit to ships already mounting the older models.

Compared to the Sea Sparrow, ESSM has a larger, more powerful rocket motor for increased range and agility, as well as upgraded aerodynamics using strakes and skid-to-turn. In addition, ESSM takes advantage of the latest missile guidance technology, with different versions for Aegis/AN/SPY-1, Sewaco/Active Phased Array Radar (APAR), and traditional target illumination all-the-way. ESSM Block II will leverage existing technology and features a dual-mode X-band seeker, increased maneuverability, and other enhancements. Unlike Block 1, Block 2’s active seeker will support terminal engagement without the launch ship’s target illumination radars. The improved ESSM Block II will be fielded by the US Navy from 2020.