Armaments

Ballistic, cruise and hypersonic missiles: the differences in the Iran-Israel military arsenal

Iran's attack on Israel highlighted the use of ballistic, cruise and hypersonic missiles. Learn about the characteristics and differences between these weapons

by Davide Madeddu

2 October 2024

Tel Aviv sotto attacco

2' min read

2' min read

In the attack on Israel on 1 October, Iran used some 200 ballistic missiles , which were of a higher capacity (hypersonic) than those used in April, when it had also deployed drones and cruise missiles. But what is the difference between these types of munitions?
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Ballistic missiles

The most commonly used missiles are the so-called ballistic missiles, which have been present in military arsenals for decades.

'To explain how they work,' clarifies a retired army general who prefers to remain anonymous, 'we can say that these are missiles that go into the atmosphere and then head for the target once they have reached their maximum point and are deployed quite a bit in nearby areas. Just to give you an example, a ballistic missile does not cover the tract between Moscow and New York'. But, again reasoning absurdly, 'it can cover a distance like that between Italy and Poland or Hungary'.

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The ballistic trajectory

They are called ballistic because they travel according to the ballistic trajectory, i.e. a parabolic path going out of the atmosphere and then re-entering to hit the target.

The panorama of these instruments sees short-range Srbm - Short Range Ballistic Missile under 1,000 kilometres; mid-range Mrbm - Medium Range Ballistic Missile between 1,000 and 3,000; intermediate-range Irbm - Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile with a range of between 3,000 and 5.5,000 kilometres; intercontinental with a capacity exceeding 5.5,000 kilometres.

Ballistic missiles can also be launched from a submarine. In this case, too, there are different ranges.

Then there are the strategic ballistic missiles that require a base (which may resemble that of a space launch) and go into orbit and then fall back down. Each missile can then carry different loads and can be fired from both mobile and fixed positions.

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Cruise missiles

The cruise missile, e.g. the BGM-109 Tomahawk 'is launched from a position and is guided by a programme that is in the missile,' explains the general: 'this programme is so sophisticated because it travels at a very low altitude and to prevent enemy radar systems from intercepting it'. With the result that the missile 'coasts along the altitude of the terrain until it reaches its target'.

It generally does not climb higher than 25 to 30 kilometres. It is usually used for precision attacks and travels at subsonic speeds.

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The latest generation of hypersonics

Then there are the hypersonic missiles of the latest generation, which have a speed five times faster than the speed of sound and can, in some cases, be 10 times faster than sound. 'Satellites detect them,' argues the general, 'but there is no time to alarm those who may be in the target'.

Drones

The drones , initially used to monitor and spy on the positions of the opposing armed forces, eventually became real weapons. Not surprisingly, those with a long range are loaded to hit targets.