Under the Radar Screen? The Cruise Missile Threat to the U.S. Homeland

Abstract

While the threat from ballistic missiles has received considerable public attention, less publicized is the emerging threat to the U.S. homeland from cruise missiles. The relevant technologies are simpler, older, and more common than many people realize. Even a single, short-range cruise missile can, if launched from a civilian ship or airplane, reach the U.S. coastline to inflict potentially catastrophic damage. The threat concerns not only the U.S. Air Force and Navy but likewise the Army, which is responsible for ground-based air defense. Indeed, this threat could return the Army to a nearly forgotten chapter of its history, that of defending the homeland directly with coast artillery. What ought to dispel any talk of living in the past, however, is the cutting-edge technology necessary for cruise missile defense.