The Harpoon missile first entered service in 1978 and has been
upgraded numerous times since. However, even when compared to
Soviet missiles of that era such as the AS-6 Kingfish and SS-N-12
'Sandbox' the Harpoon was at best mediocre in performance. The
Soviet weapons had ranges of over 500km and had 2,200lb warheads as
compared to the 500lb warhead of the Harpoon, not to mention higher
speeds. The USA however had large numbers of Harpoons and since
Soviet ships were not renown for their air defences, the capability
was judged to be adequate, especially against SAMs like the SA-N-1
Goa and SA-N-3b Goblet meant primarily for the anti-aircraft role.
The Harpoon missile was in fact a small part of the USN's anti-ship
strategy which included the striking power of its over 60 SSNs and
12 aircraft carrier battle groups.
In recent years, new weapons such as the SS-N-26 (Yakhont) and
SS-N-27 'Sizzler' offer performance surpassing even that of the
Harpoon Block 2. New European missiles such as the MM40 Exocet
Block 3 and NSM also present a potent threat to ships not equipped
with adequate air defences. Singapore currently has the largest
anti-ship missile inventory in the region comprising of several
hundred Gabriel 2 and Harpoon missiles. However, they represent
older technology and several shots would be required against modern
warships operated by several SEA countries to ensure a kill. A
supersonic weapon coupled with stealth characteristics would
greatly increase the killing power of our surface fleet.
Any conflicting views are welcome. Lets keep this thread alive.
