US to deploy anti-ship Tomahawk missiles on subs to deter China

WASHINGTON - The United States Navy plans to begin arming submarines in 2024 with ship-targeting versions of the widely used Tomahawk missile, part of Washington's push to ramp up military capabilities to challenge Chinese maritime forces, particularly around Taiwan.

The Maritime Strike version of the Tomahawk, the missile traditionally used as a ground-attack weapon, will be fielded after Oct 1, programme manager Captain Jon Hersey said in a statement.

The latest models will be modified with a new guidance system enabling them to "engage a mobile target at sea", he said, adding that the navy took delivery of the initial version in 2022 for tests before declaring it combat ready.

Fielding the new version of the Tomahawk, which made its battlefield debut in the early hours of the 1991 Persian Gulf War in Iraq, would add to a growing US arsenal of ship-attack missiles to complement submarine-launched torpedoes intended to counter China's numerically superior fleet.

While the US Navy also plans to start fielding the weapons on surface vessels, those are more vulnerable to China's land- and sea-based anti-ship arsenal.