RIM-8 Talos

RIM-8 Talos
RIM-8G Talos missile.
Type	Surface-to-air missile
Place of origin	United States
Service history
In service	Withdrawn from service 1980
Used by	United States Navy
Production history
Manufacturer	Bendix
Produced	1958
Specifications
Weight	7,800 lb (3,538 kg) (missile: 3,400 lb (1,542 kg), booster: 4,400 lb (1,996 kg)
Length	38ft (11.6 metres)
Diameter	28 in (0.7 metres)
Warhead	136 kg (300 lb) continuous-rod HE warhead or W30 nuclear warhead (2–5 kt)
Engine	Bendix ramjet sustainer, Stage1: MK 11 solid-fueled rocket booster, Stage2: Bendix ramjet sustainer 20,053lbf, 89.20kN
Wingspan	2.80 m (110 in)
Operational range	185 km (100 nm); RIM-8A: 92 km (50 nm)
Flight ceiling	24,400 m (80,000 ft)
Speed	Mach 2.5
Guidance system	Radar beam riding and (non-nuclear variants) semi-active radar homing
Launch platform	Surface Ship

The Bendix RIM-8 Talos was a long-range naval surface-to-air missile, and was among the earliest surface-to-air missiles to equip United States Navy ships. The Talos used radar beam riding for guidance to the vicinity of its target, and semiactive radar homing (SARH) for terminal guidance. The array of four antenna which surround the nose are SARH receivers which functioned as a continuous wave interferometer. Initial thrust was provided by a solid rocket booster for launch and a Bendix ramjet for flight to the target with the warhead serving as the ramjet's compressor.

Talos was the end product of Operation Bumblebee, the Navy's 16-year surface-to-air missile development program for protection against guided anti-ship missiles like Henschel Hs 293 glide bombs, Fritz X, and kamikaze aircraft. The Talos was the primary effort behind the Bumblebee project, but was not the first missile the program developed; the RIM-2 Terrier was the first to enter service. The Talos was originally designated SAM-N-6, and was redesignated RIM-8 in 1963. The airframe structure was manufactured by McDonnell Aircraft in St. Louis; final assembly was by Bendix Missile Systems in Mishawaka, Indiana.

The Talos saw relatively limited use due to its large size and dual radar antenna system; there were few ships that could accommodate the large missiles with the AN/SPW-2 missile guidance radar and the AN/SPG-49 target illumination and tracking radar. The 11.6-meter-long, 3½-tonne missile was similar in size to a fighter aircraft. The Talos Mark 7 launcher system was installed in three Galveston-class cruisers (converted Cleveland class light cruisers) with 14 missiles in a ready-service magazine and up to 30 unmated missiles and boosters in a storage area above the main deck. Nuclear-powered USS Long Beach and three Albany-class cruisers (converted Baltimore class heavy cruisers) carried Mark 12 launchers fed from behind by a 46-round magazine below the main deck.