The budget committee of the German parliament (Bundestag) on June 26 approved development funding for the joint program with Norway to develop a new antiship missile, dubbed “Supersonic Strike Missile”, or “3SM” for short. The new missile, named “Tyrfing” after a magic sword from Norse mythology, potentially represents a notable first for Western AShM. The collaboration aims to create a weapon capable of speeds between Mach 2 and 3 at a range of between 800 and 1,000 km.
Norway’s Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace, manufacturer of the “Naval Strike Missile” (NSM) currently seeing widespread adaption among Western militaries, will take the lead on this program. In addition, missile producers Diehl and MBDA Germany assume significant responsibilities for development. Kongsberg announced the partnership for the program in May this year.
The German government release detailing the funding approval did not set out a budget. According to media reporting on the effort Germany expects to spend approximately 650 million Euros between now and 2033. Notably, funding until 2027 is ensured through the “Sondervermoegen” one off-military fund initiated in 2022. However, additional resources from 2028 will require allocations from the regular German defence budget. Berlin has so far struggled to set aside appropriate budget ceilings for defence spending in their medium term budgetary projections.
Background and missile profile
Norwegian government officials first revealed the 3SM program in November 2023. The effort aims to provide a missile ready for fielding by 2035. German defence media “Hartpunkt” in their reporting last week suggested a contract signature launching the development phase to occur before the end of the second quarter 2024.
Exact specifications of the missile at this stage are yet to be confirmed. Beyond the notable range and speed requirements “Tyrfing” according to the German government statement should feature all weather-capability, a robust data link for reliable mission control and a capable seeker for target acquisition. Notably Berlin expects 3SM to have a warhead with selectable yield “to minimise collateral damage”. Similar to lighter and shorter ranged NSM the new design will be capable of hitting naval and land targets. Official statements have not yet specified, whether 3SM is to be a VLS-launched design. Alternatively the missile would require dedicated deck-mounted box launchers similar to NSM.
Rare effort for Western missile programs
If realised along current specifications, “Tyrfing” would be a first among Western antiship missiles. The combination of supersonic flight and long range have primarily remained a feature of various Soviet AShM, in addition to evolutions or variants fielded by Russia, India and China. France pursued two supersonic anti-ship missile-developments (“ANS” in the 1980s and “ANF” in the 1990s) but neither came to fruition. The United States originally intended to field both sub- and supersonic AShM under their “Long Range Anti-Ship Missile”-effort. However, in 2012 the US axed the supersonic LRASM-B, focusing on the subsonic LRASM-A, now just known as LRASM. A new report earlier this year indicated that LRASM-A will not feature a land attack capability, focusing on ASuW entirely. The US Navy is looking to field the future Hypersonic Air-Launched Offensive Anti-Surface Warfare (HALO) weapon system no later than 2029 but like LRASM-A, it will not include a land attack capability.
Another effort comparable to the Supersonic Strike Missile would be the Franco-British “Future Cruise/Antiship Weapon” (FC/ASW). However, somewhat like LRASM the FC/ASW-project joined by Italy last year aims to develop two variants. One would be a supersonic AShM available from 2028. A second, subsonic missile optimised for stealth would address the land attack-requirement by 2030.
Therefore, if 3SM emerges as presently communicated, the German-Norwegian effort would represent the first Western capability addressing both requirements through a single design.
