Typhon was a missile system developed by the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

in the late 1950s, intended to serve as an integrated air-defense system for Navy fleets. Consisting of the SAM-N-8 Typhon LR, later designated RIM-50A, and the SAM-N-9 Typhon MR, later RIM-55A, paired with the AN/SPG-59 radar system, the cost and expense of the Typhon system led to it being cancelled in favor of the Standard Missile program.

Design and development

Development of Typhon was initiated in the late 1950s, as the existing

Talos In Greek mythology, Talos — also spelled Talus (; el, Τάλως, ''Tálōs'') or Talon (; el, Τάλων, ''Tálōn'') — was a giant automaton made of bronze to protect Europa in Crete from pirates and invaders. He circled the island's sh ...

Terrier Terrier (from Latin ''terra'', 'earth') is a type of dog originally bred to hunt vermin. A terrier is a dog of any one of many breeds or landraces of the terrier type, which are typically small, wiry, game, and fearless. Terrier breeds vary ...

, and Tartar ("3T") long-, medium-, and short-ranged missiles were considered to be approaching obsolescence; in the event of a mass attack by Soviet bomber forces, the requirement for each missile to have its own dedicated target illuminator would lead to rapid saturation of the defensive system. The Typhon system, developed under a contract awarded to the

Bendix Corporation Bendix Corporation is an American manufacturing and engineering company which, during various times in its existence, made automotive brake shoes and systems, vacuum tubes, aircraft brakes, aeronautical hydraulics and electric power systems, av ...

, would overcome this through the use of the AN/SPG-59

electronically scanned array In antenna theory, a phased array usually means an electronically scanned array, a computer-controlled array of antennas which creates a beam of radio waves that can be electronically steered to point in different directions without moving t ...

radar system, capable of tracking and engaging multiple targets simultaneously. The missile system to complement the radar was originally named Super Talos (long-range) and Super Tartar (short-range), but to avoid confusion with upgrades for the existing missiles was soon renamed Typhon.Parsch 2001a Typhon LR, the only version of the Typhon missile system to be test-flown, was

ramjet A ramjet, or athodyd (aero thermodynamic duct), is a form of airbreathing jet engine that uses the forward motion of the engine to produce thrust. Since it produces no thrust when stationary (no ram air) ramjet-powered vehicles require an ass ...

-powered and was capable of intercepting high-speed aircraft and missiles, engaging targets in the Mach 3–4 range at between to altitude and to range; a secondary capability in the

surface-to-surface A surface-to-surface missile (SSM) or ground-to-ground missile (GGM) is a missile designed to be launched from the ground or the sea and strike targets on land or at sea. They may be fired from hand-held or vehicle mounted devices, from fixed ins ...

role, capable of targeting enemy ships, was also included in the specification. While primarily intended to be armed with a conventional

high explosive An explosive (or explosive material) is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure. An exp ...

warhead, Typhon LR was designed to be capable of carrying the W60

nuclear warhead A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...

. Typhon MR was designed to be capable of intercepting aircraft at between to in altitude and to range, but had yet to enter testing before the Typhon project was cancelled.Parsch 2001b

Operational history

In March 1961 the first test launches of the SAM-N-8 Typhon LR took place; beginning in 1962, the test ship entered refit to install the Typhon Weapon Control System to allow at-sea tests to be undertaken.DANFS 1970 However the expense of the Typhon system, combined with the technical issues encountered during development, meant that the program was cancelled in November 1963. The conversion of ''Norton Sound'' was allowed to be completed to provide test data,Boslaugh 1999, p.180. the ship recommissioning in June 1964; following the tests the Typhon equipment was removed in July 1966. In lieu of Typhon, the U.S. Navy developed the Standard Missile family to provide air defense for the fleet, with the

RIM-66 Standard The RIM-66 Standard MR (SM-1MR/SM-2MR) is a medium-range surface-to-air missile (SAM), with a secondary role as an anti-ship missile, originally developed for the United States Navy (USN). A member of the Standard Missile family of weapons, the ...

and

RIM-67 Standard ER The RIM-67 Standard ER (SM-1ER/SM-2ER) is an extended range surface-to-air missile (SAM) and anti-ship missile originally developed for the United States Navy (USN). The RIM-67 was developed as a replacement for the RIM-8 Talos, a 1950s system d ...

missiles replacing Tartar and Terrier respectively.

References

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