The Royal Netherlands Navy has announced that the Naval Strike Missile (NSM) will replace the aging Harpoon Anti-Ship missiles on its Air Defence & Command Frigates.
Dutch MoD stated that deliveries will start in 2025. The Dutch MoD added:
The NSM missile system has several advantages over the Harpoon. The range is much longer and the missile uses an advanced infrared seeker. This makes it easier to recognize the target, the missile is more precise and the chance of accidental damage is reduced. Furthermore, the missile is difficult to detect by enemy ships due to the use of stealth properties.
Dutch De Zeven Provinciën class frigates will get the latest Naval Strike Missiles (NSM). Developed by Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace, Naval Strike Missile is an anti-ship and land-attack missile. Currently, this missile is in service with 10 navies around the world including US Navy. This missile has a range of about 100 nautical missiles (>185 kilometers) and weighs 407 kilograms.
The Naval Strike Missile eludes enemy radar and defense systems by performing evasive maneuvers and flying at sea-skimming altitude. NSM uses an advanced seeker for precise targeting and carries a 500-pound class warhead with a programmable fuze.
In 2018, the Navy selected the Naval Strike Missile for its over-the-horizon defense of littoral combat ships and future frigates. The USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS 10) launched NSM in 2019 during Pacific Griffin, a biennial exercise conducted near Guam. NSM is also suited for land attack missions because it can climb and descend with the terrain.
The NSM has very high survivability against modern Air Defence systems.
This is accomplished by the following:
• Passive sensors
• Very low signature
• Extremely low sea-skimming altitude
• Terrain following flight
• High agility with selectable end-game flight profiles
• Very precise designated time-on-target
“KONGSBERG is very proud to have been selected by the Netherlands Ministry of Defence to provide the NSM to the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN) Air Defence & Command Frigates. This is another great achievement for the NSM program and we are very pleased to welcome the RNLN as a member of the NSM User Group,” says Eirik Lie, President of Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace.
Source: Press Release of Dutch MoD & KONGSBERG with additional comments by Umair Aslam
Umair Aslam is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Global Defense Insight. He has worked as a defense journalist reporting on military modernization programs, defense industry, arms procurement, and emerging technologies.
