Missile defense is no longer simply about the task of defeating targets on a ballistic trajectory, but now also includes defeating cruise missiles as well. As cruise missiles continue to proliferate, defenses will become more and more important in the coming years.
Without effective command and control and in-flight communication, all of the sensor data in the world is not particularly helpful. Continuing to upgrade these capabilities represents an investment in reliability of the system. And of course, none of this works without the members of the Armed Services manning these systems.
The Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) System, is the sea-based component of the Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS). It uses the SPY-1 radar and variants of Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) or Standard Missile-6 to intercept ballistic missiles during midcourse or terminal phases of flight. The system is integrated on certain U.S. Navy Ticonderoga-class Cruisers (CG) and Arleigh Burke-class...
