A U.S. Army unit assigned to U.S. European Command—tasked with breaking area denial networks and sinking moving maritime targets—fired a Tomahawk cruise missile last month.
Assigned to Multi-Domain Command – Europe, the 3rd Battalion of the 12th Field Artillery Regiment launched the cruise missile from a Typhon launcher at Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake on September 28.
According to a release from the unit, the launch marked the third time the Army’s Typhon launchers fired in the Continental U.S. Before the live-fire, the battalion’s Mid-Range Capability battery learned how to operate the system through a five-week-long training course held by the Navy and Lockheed Martin.
Equipped with SM-6 and Tomahawks, Typhon missile systems represent one of the service’s lines of effort in fielding long-range maritime strike capabilities. These procurements and Army initiatives to sink ships come amid Beijing’s naval build-up in the Indo-Pacific.
U.S. ground-based missile exercises are also increasing across Europe. Last month, the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps deployed Naval Strike Missiles and a containerized launching system to Norway for Operation Atlantic City 2026. The exercise focused on expeditionary advanced basing operations in support of maritime domain awareness and establishing sea denial.
“We get that range for that combatant commander to give them options and capabilities where they really haven’t had it before from the land force,” Lt. Col. Derek Bartlett, commander of the battalion stated in an Army release.
Typhon and Army Maritime Strike Plans
Since 2024, Mid-Range Capability batteries belonging to various Multi-Domain Task Forces have fired at least five times. Two of these launches occurred west of the international date line. In 2025, an SM-6 hit a maritime target during a drill in Australia. This summer saw a Typhon launcher fire a Tomahawk cruise missile 630 kilometers to strike a land target in the Philippines.
The live-fire culminated a series of drills for the unit, which has been assigned as the command’s Long-Range Fires Battalion. Alongside its Mid-Range Capability battery, the European theater-level formation is also equipped with an M142 High Mobility Rocket Artillery Systems (HIMARS). HIMARS assigned to Multi-Domain Command formations will field the service’s upcoming extended-range maritime strike-capable Precision Strike Missile Increments 2 and 4.
The Long-Range Fires Battalions operate alongside specialized intelligence collection, air defense, electronic warfare and cyber units. With this combination of capabilities within a single unit, the Army hopes to dismantle the area denial networks fielded by China and Russia. Service warfighting documents also showcase the potential of Multi-Domain Operations formations when operating with the Marine Corps, Air Force and Navy in joint operations.
