Japan's new missile: A boost to regional defence strategy
Japan has conducted tests of a new missile, the 12SSM-ER, with a range of approximately 1,500 kilometres. This represents a significant step towards strengthening the defence of the Land of the Rising Sun. Here is what is known about the new missile.
The Japanese Ministry of Defence, in cooperation with the Self-Defence Forces, tested the new 12SSM-ER missile, which boasts a range of around 1,500 kilometres. The tests were conducted from a land-based launcher equipped with two transport-launch containers mounted on the heavy Mitsubishi 8×8 Gen.2 platform.
This is a crucial system for Japan, which has been adapting its pacifist policy in recent years. It is lifting export restrictions for both existing and new armaments. A good example of this is the joint sixth-generation fighter project "Tempest," developed with the United Kingdom and Italy to replace the ageing F-2 fighter fleet.
12SSM-ER missile - Japan's whip against the Chinese fleet
The new missile is based on the anti-ship Type-12, which originally had a range of 200 kilometres but has been extended. The new version is expected to be approximately 9 metres long and weigh up to 1,600 kilograms, placing it close to the American Tomahawk, which Japan is also acquiring as a temporary deterrent for its naval surface ships.
The new missiles will likely be available in a land-based version for coastal defence systems or a sea-based version for installation on Type 13DDX destroyers. These, combined with drones and supported by artificial intelligence algorithms, will be formidable weapons. Japan will also be able to use this system to support its American ally in the region.
Beyond its weight and dimensions, the missile is known to be equipped with a rocket booster that drops after burnout, with a turbojet engine handling the remainder of the flight. The missile's speed is likely similar to that of the regular Type-12, around 0.9 Mach (approximately 306 metres per second).
The warhead and guidance system remain open questions. The 12SSM-ER may feature a larger warhead than the current 225 kilograms, and the guidance system may also have been improved. The anti-ship variant combined inertial navigation with a radar-seeking head operating in the final phase of the flight.
In the case of the 12SSM-ER version, the GPS and INS tandem likely remain, but it has been enhanced with a communication link ensuring connectivity with the carrier. Moreover, following the trend in cruise missiles, it is likely that the Japanese have opted for an electro-optical head that detects the thermal image of the target and can track the terrain, as is the case in the Storm Shadow or Taurus KEPD-350.
