One of the most famous missiles in the world! Why Tomahawks can't be launched from an airplane

The American Tomahawk missile can be launched from land, water and even submarines, but not from the air, although the AGM-109, which can be launched from the air, was under development but never put into production, writes Defense Express, quoted by Focus.

Tomahawk is one of the most famous missiles in the world, but for now, talks about even the theoretical possibility of Ukraine receiving it seem illusory. And the issue is not even that the defense forces do not have carriers for them, but only in the political will, which Washington does not intend to demonstrate for the time being.

But if we ask ourselves how they can be launched at all, there are only three operational options. The first is a surface ship with a universal vertical launcher Mk 41. The second is the Typhon anti-aircraft missile system, which Germany wants to purchase. Or its component - the Mk 70 launcher.

The third is submarines that can launch a special version of the UGM-109 Tomahawk through torpedo tubes, but it is no longer produced. Or from vertical cells Mk45, as on the submarines of the "Virginia" and "Los Angeles" classes from the "Flight II" variant.

And, oddly enough, the aircraft are not carriers of Tomahawk cruise missiles in any of their versions. They are not carried by any tactical aircraft or strategic bomber. Not even by the B-52, which seems to be able to carry anything.

Even the B-52, which seems to be able to carry anything.

The reason for this is very simple. In 1972, as a result of fierce cabinet battles, the development of a new type of weapon was agreed upon - a cruise missile, the future "“Tomahawk", initiated by the US Navy. The covert struggle in the Pentagon significantly influenced the speed of development, which ultimately culminated in the start of mass production in 1983. But for the US Navy.

The US Air Force received the AGM-86 ALCM, which had been under development since 1974, a year earlier. It was intended for the B-52. And its successor was a new generation cruise missile - the AGM-129, using "stealth" technology, which was later destroyed under an agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

But there was still a chance for an airborne Tomahawk. There was a MRASM project to create the AGM-109 Tomahawk. Ultimately, this would allow for significant unification even within the US Navy. At the same time, the possibility of using the A-6E as its carrier was being considered.

However, the weight and dimensions of the missile already exceeded the permissible deviations from the aircraft's landing weight and the available weapon elevators of aircraft carriers. Therefore, even a smaller and shorter version of the missile did not go into production.

The air-launched AGM-109 Tomahawk also did not arouse enthusiasm among the Air Force. Although the AGM-109H version was offered with 28 BLU-106/B BKEP sub-warheads for runway destruction. In 1982, the Navy first withdrew from this project, and in 1984 - the US Air Force, which ended the history of the MRASM project.

But Tomahawk did reach the Air Force. But not on aircraft, but for ground-based launchers in the BGM-109G Gryphon version. This version of the missile had only a thermonuclear design with a W80 charge with a power of up to 150 kt.

This weapon was seen as a complement to the Pershing II ballistic missiles that the army had. The reason it ended up in the Air Force could be explained by the Pentagon's desire to evenly distribute its nuclear triad, or simply by the fact that the "nuclear" Tomahawk's 2,500 km range is already for strategic missions. They began to be deployed in 1983, but very soon, in 1987, the US and the USSR signed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, which provided for their elimination.