January 15, 2020
Why F-35 Pilots Love the Naval Strike Missile
It will sink many ships.
by Kyle Mizokami
Key point: The Navy and Air Force need a way to deter and, if necessary, eliminate enemy ships. This is where F-35s armed with the Naval Strike Missile come in.
The modern age of the missile at sea was arguably kicked off in October 1967, when the Israeli destroyer Eilat, sailing fourteen miles off the coast of Port Said, was ambushed by a pair of Osa-class guided missile boats. The missile boats launched four missiles, three of which hit the ex–Royal Navy destroyer, sinking her and killing forty-seven sailors.
The sinking of the Eilat was an earthquake in the world of naval warfare, and set off an arms race in the field of antiship missiles. Within ten years all major navies had their own ship-killing missiles, a rivalry that continued until the end of the Cold War. Now, with the Chinese and Russian navies resurgent, many countries (including the United States) are looking to replace their aging antiship missile arsenals with a new, modern design.
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/why-f-35-pilots-love-naval-strike-missile-113991
