RIM-66/67 Standard Missile 2 (SM-2)
| Variant: | RIM-67C SM-2ER Block II |
| Type: | Anti-air/anti-ship missile |
| Guidance: | Inertial midcourse, radar terminal |
| Warhead: | Conventional fragmentation |
| Propellant: | Two stage solid fuel |
| Range: | 100 nautical miles (185km) |
| Speed: | Mach 3.5 (1,032m/s) |
| Length: | 26.2 feet (7.98m) |
| Weight: | 2,960 pounds (1,340kg) |
| First firing: | 12 October 1981 |
The Standard Missiles are a family of anti-air and anti-ship systems that were designed to replace the 3T (Talos, Terrier, Tartar) missiles developed early during the Cold War. The RIM-66 and RIM-67 designations refer to the Medium Range and Extended Range versions, respectively. The RIM-66 Standard Missile 1 Medium Range was designed to replace the RIM-24 Tartar, while the RIM-67 Standard Missile 1 Extended Range replaced the RIM-2 Terrier and RIM-8 Talos.
The Standard Missile family was designed with an intent to produce a modular system that could incorporate new technologies without requiring a complete redesign of its hardware or software, its fire control and launching systems, and the many auxiliary components that are required to maintain a combat-ready missile-based defense system at sea. Johns Hopkins University’s Applied Physics Laboratory referred to this capability as the Standard Missile’s “Common Denominator.” Upgrades would be limited to specific subsystems and implemented directly into the production phase. Critical components would maintain a commonality that could be passed from one generation to the next. To lower the time and cost required for development and production, modifications were introduced in “Blocks,” which would group together improvements based on operational needs.
Replacing the first generation Standards with the new Standard Missile 2 began in 1969, when the Navy selected the Aegis Weapon System as its answer to the increasing threat of ship-targeting missiles. Although Aegis was intended to completely replace the Standard, successful upgrades to the SM-1 to meet Aegis’ capability requirements led to the SM-2, which entered service in 1980. The SM-2 is still in use today, but was redesignated as the RIM-156 when it was adapted for use in the Aegis Vertical Launch System. Due to the Block system and more than four decades of operation, there are dozens of Standard Missile variants, not all of which have been successful. The next-generation models include the RIM-161 SM-3, an anti-ballistic missile, and the RGM-165 Land Attack Standard Missile (SM-4), which never moved past testing. The SM-5 would have been an “any sensor” missile with Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC), but it quickly overran budget limitations and was dropped in favor of the the RIM-174 Extended Range Active Missile (SM-6).
