Lance Missile

Lance
<imgur w=250>y5lrzd4.png</imgur>
Type	Long-range, all-weather, subsonic cruise missile
Service history
In service	2002-Present
Used by	Belfras see operators
Production history
Manufacturer	BAU Systems
Specifications
Weight	1,950 kg (4,300 lb) 1,500 kg (3,300 lb) with booster 2,000 kg (4,400 lb) with ER booster
Length	5.8 m (19 ft) without booster 7 m (23 ft) with booster 7.45 m (24.4 ft) with ER booster
Diameter	0.55 m (22 in) 0.85 m (2.8 ft) with ER booster
Warhead	Variable
Wingspan	0.98 m (3.2 ft) folded 2.7 m (8.9 ft) unfolded
Propellant	Solid-fuel Booster Rocket Liquid-fuel turbo-fan Primary
Operational range	1,620 km (870 nmi) 2,000 km (1,100 nmi) with ER assistance
Flight ceiling	22,000 m (72,000 ft)
Flight altitude	250 m (820 ft) Cruising 5 m (16 ft) Terminal
Speed	752 mph (1,210 km/h)
Guidance system	GPS, INS, Active radar homing + Terminal infra-red guidance
Launch platform	Fixed-wing aircraft, Vertical Launch System (VLS) and horizontal submarine torpedo tubes (known as TTL (Torpedo Tube Launch))

The Lance is a long-range, all-weather, subsonic cruise missile named after the pole weapon utilized by knights in the medieval era. Introduced by BAU Systems in 2001, it was originally intended to operate as a long-range, low altitude missile to be launched from a submerged platform. The Federation Navy accepted the weapon but insisted on several adjustments, incorporating several variants and a large difference of both warhead, range, and purpose. The Lance has shown itself to be a capable addition to the Armed Forces, being used from airplanes, surface ships, submarines, and land-based vehicles.

Design

Lance being launched from R.N.V Indomitable (DDG-57)

The weapon has a range of 1,620 km, with the ranges being boosted to 2,000 km through the usage of a extended-range mount that provides extra fuel before jettisoning. The Lance has a speed of 575 mph and an adjustable cruising altitude from 60 meters to 5 meters depending on range and preference at time of launch. The platforms that can mount the Lance are many, with the Belfrasian Air Force utilizing the Lance aboard bombers and strike aircraft whilst the Federation Navy utilizes the weapon aboard the vast majority of it's vessels. The warhead, guidance system, and programming of the weapon are modular and software changes to it's mission profile can be changed whilst loaded, allowing it to provide it's users with a modular and multi-role platform. The weapon is seen as a strategic tool by the Belfrasian Armed Forces and is intended to be used against places of strategic importance and targets of opportunity such as surface ships or submarines in port.

The programming on the missile is incredibly versatile. It can be specifically programmed prior to launch or loaded with a specific target package to alter angles of it's deployed wings, cruising altitude, and speed. Once launched, the missile can have it's target information changed, it can relay new information to the launch platform, and it can be self-destructed should the need ever arise. Whilst in flight, the missile follows a pre-designated path semi-autonomously, with minor corrections able to be made during it's flight. The missile can be configured to approach it's target however the user chooses, either approaching low and striking from the side, or climbing and bunting into a dive for a top-down impact. A thermographic camera can be mounted under a discarding nose cone for in-area target identification for infra-red homing, allowing for the missile to possibly circle the target area first or when needing to either reacquire the target or locate a new one. Should no idea be located, the missile can be ordered to proceed to a discarding point, at which point it is detonated whilst in a dive to concentrate debris and reduce the risk of collateral damage.

The same relay that allows for the launch platform or a third party (i.e remote command center) to control the missile also works in reverse. The missile can relay information from the area to the controller, allowing for a missile in a salvo to provide a battle damage assessment before it's own strike and to provide an expendable recon platform, with a small detonation charge and larger fuel payload replacing the warhead.

The weapon comes with an 'Extended-Range Mount', which mimics fuel tanks seen on aircraft. The tank, which conformally wraps around the middle, jettisons in four stages during usage to keep a good center of gravity and thrust/weight ratio in flight. The added size of the mount, referred to as ER-Mount, removes it's ability to be used on ships and submarines and is instead an air and ground launch addition.

Variants

Over the course of the Lance's inclusion to the arsenal of the Federation Navy, it has been further developed with diverting variants being made along the way.

Lance AS-3

Primary anti-shipping missile. Carries 450kg High Explosive Fragmentation head with HARDHAT Penetration prior to detonation. Comes encapsulated for vertical and horizontal (torpedo tube) launches from submarines as well as launches from a ship's Vertical Launch System (VLS). With the introduction of the Trebuchet Missile in 2012, the AS-3 has been slated for gradual removal from usage.

Lance GPHE-2

Designed for warfare against enemies utilising below-ground access ways or for usage in sub-surface detonations, the GPHE-2 (Ground Penetrating High Explosive) maneuvers for an extremely high-angle attack profile over it's target coordinates and discards it's wings and control surfaces moments before impact, with an extremely hardened and sleak frame allowing it to burrow itself deep into the ground before detonating a 300kg high explosive warhead. A delayed fuse on the detonation allows for it to be completely buried to intensify the pressure of the blast. A sub-variant, the GPHE-2A contains it's warhead in four 'chunks' that get sheered off during impact to create a trail of explosives from the surface to it's primary detonation point.

Lance TH-1

Carries a 450kg Thermobaric warhead utilising High Explosive/Al-Eth Oxide mixture for detonation. Primarily used for an area attack air burst weapon or for delayed-fuse ground penetration of buried targets.

Lance RP-1

Reconnaissance platform missile, essentially an expendable platform that replaces it's warhead and targeting sensors for surveillance equipment and extended fuel stores for longer on-station time. A small charge detonates whilst the missile is in a steep dive to destroy the missile at the end of it's mission and to concentrate debris in a small box to avoid collateral damage.

Lance NW-4

Weapon is outfitted with a NW150 nuclear warhead offering a variable yield between 5 to 150 kt. Weapon also has a refitted sensor package for GPS/INS guidance to target along with a pre-terminal kill package to terminate the missile mid-flight if required.

Lance SD-5

Sub-munition dispensing missile. Inspired by the previously utilised Nenda 44, it's increased weight and reduced fuel load reduces range to 2200km. Each payload is jettisoned through an end-phase 'spiral spin' to dispense munitions over a greater area than previous versions of the missile. Each missile can carry eight 155mm canisters or 10 127mm canisters.

• APSM-1: Anti-Personnel Sub-Munition Type I carries 80 munitions per canister, each containing a High Explosive/White Phosphorus filling with steel ball-bearings and incendiary pellets ignited by the detonation.
• APSM-2: Anti-Personnel Sub-Munition Type II is identical to APSM-1, although it carries 70 munitions per canister lacking the steel ball-bearings and incendiary pellets in favour of a bouncer mechanism to ensure a rebound detonation at roughly 1 meter for maximum effect on target.
• ATSM-1: Anti-Tank Sub-Munition Type I is a canister consisting of an advanced sensor package and four smart anti-tank sub munitions. Each canister has an uplink to the missile, ensuring that each munition has an at-launch uploaded no-go list for targets to avoid targeting civilian/friendly equipment and a tight-beam differential to avoid two munitions going for the same target and ignoring one altogether. The sub-munition, upon release, enters a fin-controlled spin and scans the kill-zone with dual-mode laser/IR to locate targets, at which point the control surfaces guide the munition to it's target for a top attack profile. The sub-munition, nearing impact, detonates a primer charge that high-explosive penetrator into the target. Should no targets be found, the sub-munition will self destruct.
• CWSM-5: Chemical Warfare Sub-Munition Type II carries four staged canisters for chemical agent dispersal over a pre-specified area. Weapon enters glide pattern over target sight and jettisons the canisters with small motors. Canisters then disperse chemical agent through either main canister itself or through multiple pellets that disperse the agent over a prolonged period of time.
• ATSM-2: Anti-Tank Sub-Munition Type II is the significantly more expensive version of the two anti-tank options for the missile. Released the same way as ATSM-1, the ATSM-2 munition is essentially an armoured 155mm guided anti-tank round with a tandem-shaped penetrator.
• RDSM-1: Runway Denial Sub-Munition Type I is a single large canister filled with 30 two-staged cratering charges and 200 anti-personnel mines. The effect of the cratering charge is two fold; The first detonation is shape-charged to blow through the runway's surface, with the second high-explosive charge producing a large crater. The mines that are deployed along with the charges perform area denial service.
• MDSM-1: Mine Dispensing Sub-Munition Type I consists of 72 anti-tank and 22 anti-personnel mines per canister for the fast creation of mine fields.

Operators

Belfras