The BGM-109 Tomahawk land attack missile is renowned for its versatility, accuracy and adaptability across various combat scenarios.

The all-weather, long-range, subsonic cruise missile can strike at a distance of 1,609km and at speeds of up to 885 km/hour. It is capable of traveling at extremely low altitudes to avoid radar detection, skimming the earth or sea.

The US Navy uses Tomahawk variants primarily in ship and submarine-based operations to strike enemy ships and land targets.

The US Army chose the Tomahawk for its mid-range capability (MRC) program, providing ground forces with a long-range precision strike capability that bridges the gap between shorter-range artillery and longer-range missile systems.

Suitable for diverse mission profiles, the missile's modular design accommodates a range of warheads, including high-explosive, submunitions and bunker-busters. It can use a variety of guidance systems for different settings.

Over water, it uses inertial guidance or GPS to follow a preset course. Over land, its guidance system is aided by terrain contour matching (TERCOM).

The digital scene matching area correlation system (DSMAC) also provides terminal guidance by comparing onboard imagery with stored reference images, achieving a circular error probable of roughly 30 feet (10 meters).

The Tomahawk also has substantial strike capabilities. It is equipped with 166 sub-munitions, distributed across 24 canisters. Each canister can hold six or seven sub-munitions each.

The canisters are dispensed in pairs, one for each side of the missile, allowing the Tomahawk to strike multiple targets with precision.

The missile is capable of executing up to five separate target engagements, making it ideal for attacking a range of distinct targets within a single mission.

For optimal coverage and effectiveness, all 24 canisters are typically released sequentially, facilitating precision strike operations and delivering effective area denial and destruction across multiple target sites.

Block V variants

The Block V variant features a navigation and communications upgrade that allows the missile to receive targeting data from various platforms, including aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, satellites and ground forces.

This connectivity enables real-time updates and adjustments during flight, increasing mission flexibility and effectiveness.

The Block V includes two variants: Block Va, the maritime strike Tomahawk variant capable of striking moving targets at sea, and the Block Vb, also known as the Joint Multiple Effects Warhead System.

Block Vb is designed to enhance the penetration capabilities of the Tomahawk warhead, enabling it to hit more diverse land targets and improve hard target penetration.

Altogether, the navigation and communications upgrades make the Tomahawk tougher to counter and detect.