AEGIS BALLISTIC MISSILE DEFENCE SYSTEM

A SEMINAR REPORT
SUBMITTED BY

FAYAZ LATHEEF

Reg. No. 18021103

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of

DIPLOMA

IN

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
AT

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

GOVERNMENT POLYTECHNIC COLLEGE
KOOVAPPADY, PERUMBAVOOR
NOVEMBER 2020

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 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that Mr. FAYAZ LATHEEF, Reg No 18021103 worked under my
supervision during the year 2020-2021 on the seminar entitled “AEGIS BALLISTIC
MISSILE DEFENCE SYSTEM”. This seminar is being presented in partial
fulfillment for the award of Diploma in Mechanical Engineering by the Department of
Technical Education, Kerala.

Staff in charge Head of Department

Date:
Place: Koovappady

Internal Examiner External Examiner

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I am very glad to present a seminar report on “AEGIS BALLISTIC MISSILE
DEFENCE SYSTEM” as the partial fulfillment of the award of Diploma in
Mechanical Engineering. I express my sincere thanks to Mr. SIVAN MV (HOD
Mechanical Engineering), Mr. Ravish M.V (Lecturer in Mechanical Engineering), Mr.
AVARACHAN K.P (Lecturer in Mechanical Engineering), Mr. SURESH KUMAR
M.P (Lecturer in Mechanical engineering), Mr. SHANAS BASHEER (Lecturer in
Mechanical Engineering) and other staff members for the guidance and constant
inspiration.

I take this opportunity to express my deep sense of gratitude towards those who
helped me in various ways for preparing this report. I am also thankful to my parents
and friends who had encouraged &inspired me with their blessings and suggestions.

FAYAZ LATHEEF

Sixth Semester Mechanical Engineering

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 ABSTRACT
For nearly as long as there have been offensive weapons systems, there have
also been anti-weapons systems. For years, one of the most dangerous threats to
a state was ballistic missiles given the blinding speed with which they could
deliver some of the world’s most dangerous weapons: nuclear-armed warheads.
As such, some states have made a concentrated effort to build defences against
such weapons, known as ballistic missile defences. The Aegis Ballistic Missile
Defence (BMD) System, a part of the Aegis Combat System, is the sea-based
component of the Ballistic Missile Defence System (BMDS).

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 CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION TO MISSILE DEFENCE SYSTEM

Any object thrown at a target with the aim of hitting it is a missile.

Thus, a stone thrown at a bird is a missile. The incorporation of
energy source in a missile to provide the required force for its
movement (propulsion), intelligence to go in the correct direction
(guidance) and effective maneuvering (control) are mainly the
technologies of guided missiles. They help in making a missile
specific to a target, that is, they determine the size, range and state of
motion of a missile. There are a number of missile defensive systems
prevailing in different parts of the world, Missile defense system
enables to prevent attack from enemy missile attacks by means of
interception. Aegis ballistic missile defense system is one among
them.

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 CHAPTER 2
AEGIS SHIPS
US Navy’s cruisers and destroyers are called Aegis ships because they are
equipped with the Aegis ship combat system—an integrated collection of
sensors, computers, software, displays, weapon launchers, and weapons named
for the mythological shield that defended Zeus (Greek God). The Aegis system
was originally developed in the 1970s for defending ships against aircraft, anti-
ship cruise missiles (ASCMs), surface threats, and subsurface threats. The
system was first deployed by the Navy in 1983, and it has been updated many
times since. The Navy’s Aegis ships include Ticonderoga (CG-47) class
cruisers and Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) class destroyers.

Ticonderoga (CG-47) Class Aegis Cruisers

A total of 27 CG-47s (CGs 47 through 73) were procured for the Navy between
FY1978 and FY1988; the ships entered service between 1983 and 1994. The
first five ships in the class (CGs 47 through 51), which were built to an earlier
technical standard in certain respects, were judged by the Navy to be too
expensive to modernize and were removed from service in 2004-2005, leaving
22 ships in operation (CGs 52 through 73).

Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) Class Aegis Destroyers

A total of 62 DDG-51s were procured for the Navy between FY1985(Federal

Government Fiscal Year-FY It defines the U.S. government's budget. It runs
from October 1 of the budget's prior year through September 30 of the year
being described. For example: FY 2021 is between October 1, 2020 and
September 30, 2021) and FY2005; the first entered service in 1991 and the 62nd
entered service in FY2012. The first 28 ships are known as Flight I/II DDG-51s.
The next 34 ships, known as Flight IIA DDG-51s, incorporate some design

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changes, including the addition of a helicopter hangar. No DDG-51s were
procured in FY2006-FY2009. The Navy during this period instead procured the
three above-mentioned Zumwalt (DDG-1000) class destroyers. The DDG-1000
design does not use the Aegis system and does not include a capability for
conducting BMD operations. Navy plans do not call for modifying the three
DDG-1000s to make them BMD-capable. Procurement of DDG-51s resumed in
FY2010, following procurement of the three Zumwalt-class destroyers. A total
of 25 DDG-51s have been procured from FY2010 through FY2021. DDG-51s
procured in FY2017 and subsequent years are being built to a new version of
the DDG-51 design called the Flight III version. The Flight III version is to be
equipped with a new radar, called the SPY 6 radar or the Air and Missile
Defense Radar (AMDR), that is more capable than the SPY-1 radar installed on
all previous Aegis cruisers and destroyers.

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 CHAPTER 3
BALLISTIC MISSILES
Ballistic missiles are powered by rockets initially but then follow an unpowered,
parabolic, free-falling trajectory toward their targets. They are classified by the
maximum distance that they can travel, which is a function of how powerful the
missile’s engines (rockets) are and the weight of the missile’s payload, or
warhead. To add more distance to a missile’s range, rockets are stacked on top
of each other in a configuration referred to as staging.

There are four general classifications of ballistic missiles:

 Short-range ballistic missiles, traveling less than 1,000 kilometers

(approximately 620 miles);
 Medium-range ballistic missiles, traveling between 1,000–3,000
kilometers (approximately 620-1,860 miles);
 Intermediate-range ballistic missiles, traveling between 3,000–5,500
kilometers (approximately 1,860-3,410 miles); and
 Intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), traveling more than 5,500
kilometers.
Short- and medium-range ballistic missiles are referred to as “theatre” ballistic
missiles, whereas ICBMs or long-range ballistic missiles are described as
“strategic” ballistic missiles.

Missiles are often classified by fuel-type: liquid or solid propellants. Missiles

with solid fuel require less maintenance and preparation time than missiles with
liquid fuel because solid-propellants have the fuel and oxidizer together,
whereas liquid-fueled missiles must keep the two separated until right before
deployment.

Thirty-one countries possess ballistic missiles. Of those, only 9 (China, France,

India, Israel, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the
United States) are known to possess or suspected of possessing nuclear
weapons. These 9 states plus Iran have produced or flight-tested missiles with

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ranges exceeding 1,000 kilometers. China and Russia are the only two states
that are not U.S. allies that have a proven capability to launch ballistic missiles
from their territories that can strike the continental United States.

Three stages of flight for a ballistic missile:

1. Boost phase:
The boost phase begins at launch and lasts until the rocket engines stop firing
and pushing the missile away from Earth.
Depending on the missile, it lasts between three and five minutes.
Generally, the missile is traveling relatively slowly, although towards the end of
this stage, an ICBM can reach speeds of more than 24,000 kilometers per hour.
Most of this phase takes place in the atmosphere (endo-atmospheric).
2. Midcourse phase:
The midcourse phase begins after the rockets finish firing and when the missile
is on a ballistic course toward its target.
This is the longest stage of a missile’s flight, lasting up to 20 minutes for
ICBMs.
During the early part of the midcourse stage, the missile is still ascending
toward its apogee, while during the latter part, it is descending toward Earth.
During this stage, the missile’s warhead(s), as well as any decoys, separate from
the delivery platform, or “bus.” This phase takes place in space (exo-
atmospheric). The warhead is now called/is on a reentry vehicle (RV).
3. Terminal phase:
The terminal phase begins when the missile’s warhead, or RV, reenters the
Earth’s atmosphere (endo-atmospheric), and it continues until impact or
detonation.
This stage takes less than a minute for a strategic warhead, which can be
traveling at speeds greater than 3,200 kilometers per hour.

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 CHAPTER 4

ANTI BALLISTIC MISSILE

An anti-ballistic missile (ABM) is a surface-to-air missile designed to
counter ballistic missiles (missile defence). Ballistic missiles are used to
deliver nuclear, chemical, biological, or conventional warheads in
a ballistic flight trajectory. The term "anti-ballistic missile" is a generic term
conveying a system designed to intercept and destroy any type of ballistic
threat; however, it is commonly used for systems specifically designed to
counter intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). The system, the Integrated
Air and Missile Defence Battle Command System (IBCS), is an anti-
ballistic missile defence system designed to shoot down short, medium, and
intermediate range ballistic missiles in their terminal phase by intercepting with
a hit-to-kill approach.

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 CHAPTER 5
AEGIS BALLISTIC MISSILE DEFENCE SYSTEM

The Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System (Aegis BMD or ABMD) is a Sea
based Missile Defense system developed to provide missile defense against
short to intermediate-range ballistic missiles. It enables warships to shoot down
enemy ballistic missiles by expanding the Aegis Combat System with the
addition of the AN/SPY-1 radar and Standard missile technologies. The US
Navy’s vessels currently equipped with Aegis BMDS are Ticonderoga (CG-47)
Class cruisers and also Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) Class destroyers.

COMPONENTS OF AEGIS BMD

Aegis, like all missile defense systems, is made up of three basic components:
sensors, interceptors, and command and control.
 SENSORS
• AN/SPY-1 RADAR
• AN/SPY-6 RADAR
 INTERCEPTORS
• Standard Missile – 3 (SM-3)
• SM-2 Block IV
• SM-6.
 COMMAND AND CONTROL

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 CHAPTER 6

SENSORS

AN/SPY-1 RADAR

The AN/SPY-1 is a United States Navy 3D radar system manufactured by

Lockheed Martin. The array is a passive electronically scanned system and is a
key component of the Aegis Combat System.
The system is Computer controlled system using four complementary antennas
to provide 360-degree coverage.
The SPY-1 can maintain continuous radar surveillance while automatically
tracking more than 100 targets at one time.
Numerical figures on the SPY-1 detection range claim that it can detect a golf
ball-sized target at ranges in excess of 165 km. When applied to a ballistic
missile-sized target, the SPY-1 radar is estimated to have a range of 310 km.
Aegis BMD-equipped cruisers and destroyers are being equipped with the
capability to intercept short- and medium-range ballistic missiles as quickly as
10 seconds after the radar “sees” the missile’s movement.

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AN/SPY-6 RADAR

The AMDR (Air and Missile Defence Radar, now officially named AN/SPY-6)
is an active electronically scanned array air and missile defence active
electronically scanned array 3D radar under development for the United States
Navy (USN). It will provide integrated air and missile defence, and even
periscope detection, for the Flight 3 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.
The AMDR system consists of two primary radars and a radar suite controller
(RSC) to coordinate the sensors. An S-band radar is to provide volume search,
tracking, ballistic missile defence discrimination and missile communications
while the X-band radar is to provide horizon search, precision tracking, missile
communication and terminal illumination of targets. The S-band and X-band
sensors will also share functionality including radar navigation, periscope
detection, as well as missile guidance and communication. AMDR is intended
as a scalable system; the Burke deckhouse can only accommodate a 4.3 m (14
ft) version but the USN claim they need a radar of 6.1 m (20 ft) or more to meet
future ballistic missile threats. The radar is 30 times more sensitive and can
simultaneously handle over 30 times the targets of the existing AN/SP-1 in
order to counter large and complex raids.

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 CHAPTER 7

MARK 41 VERTICAL LAUNCH SYSTEM (VLS)

The MK 41 Vertical Launching System (VLS) is a combat proven launcher that

eliminates problems associated with conventional and single purpose launchers
on surface ships. Installed below deck, MK 41 VLS significantly enhances
performance in operational availability, survivability and versatility with
minimal staffing and training requirements. MK 41 VLS has been deployed by
13 navies on more than 26 ship classes on more than 180 ships. It is truly the
worldwide launcher of choice.
It is an advanced system for holding and firing missiles on mobile naval
platforms, such as surface ships and submarines.
MK 41 VLS is the only launching system that can simultaneously communicate
with weapon control systems and missiles of every warfighting mission area:
anti-aircraft, anti-surface, anti-submarine, ballistic missile defence and land
attack. The system is designed to accept any missile into any cell - a capability
that provides unparalleled flexibility
Each vertical launch system consists of a number of cells, which can hold one
or more missiles ready for firing.
When new missiles are developed, they are typically fitted to the existing
vertical launch systems of that nation, allowing existing ships to use new types
of missiles without expensive rework.
A VLS allows surface combatants to have a greater number of weapons ready
for firing at any given time compared to older launching systems
In addition to greater firepower, VLS is much more damage tolerant and
reliable than the previous systems, and has a lower radar cross-section

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 CHAPTER 8
COMMAND AND CONTROL

The Command and Control, Battle Management, and Communications

(C2BMC) system is a hardware and software interface for the ballistic missile
defence system (BMDS) that integrates of data from multiple sensors and fire
control units. This integration helps to build a common picture of the
battlespace for operators across the BMDS, and enables the warfighter to select
optimal firing solutions based on the BMDS status, system coverage, and
ballistic missile tracks. It also allows combatant commands to plan
engagements, particularly for missions that require coordination between a
number of BMDS elements. As of 2016, there were more than 70 C2BMC
workstations fielded across every combatant command with BMDS assets in the
region. All the data that is being processed by the sensors and radars and then
sent to the interceptors and kill vehicles are linked through another network of
command and control centers. The centers are located around the entire world
and involve several different U.S. military branches and commands working
together. The information from the sensors and interceptors routed through
command and control work together for the interception of enemy missiles.
Aegis can also launch using data from remote sensors, such as the TPY-2 X-
band radar. Onboard command and control is governed by the Aegis Combat
System, which has been gradually improved through a series of hardware and
software upgrades called “baselines.” The most recent version, Baseline 9,
allows for a single ship to conduct both ballistic missile defence and air defence
operations simultaneously. Prior baselines permitted only one of these missions
at a time, usually requiring Aegis ships to operate in pairs.

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 CHAPTER 9
AEGIS BMD INTERCEPTOR MISSILES
The BMD interceptor missiles used by Aegis ships are the Standard Missile-3
(SM-3), the SM-2 Block IV, and the SM-6.

SM-3 Midcourse Interceptor

SM-3 is a ship-based missile system used by the United States Navy to intercept

short and intermediate-range ballistic missiles. Although primarily designed as
an anti-ballistic missile, the SM-3 has also been employed in an anti-satellite
capacity against a satellite at the lower end of low Earth orbit.

The SM-3 is designed to intercept ballistic missiles above the atmosphere (i.e.,
exo-atmospheric intercept), in the midcourse phase of an enemy ballistic
missile’s flight. It is equipped with a “hitto-kill” warhead, called a kinetic
vehicle, that is designed to destroy a ballistic missile’s warhead by colliding

with it.The interceptor uses sheer force, rather than an explosive warhead, to
destroy its target. It hits threats with the force of a 10-ton truck traveling 600
mph.

MDA and Navy plans call for fielding increasingly capable versions of the SM-
3 in coming years. The current versions, called the SM-3 Block IA and SM-3
Block IB, are to be supplemented in coming years by SM-3 Block IIA.
Compared to the Block IA version, the Block IB version has an improved (two-
color) target seeker, an advanced signal processor, and an improved
divert/attitude control system for adjusting its course. Compared to the Block IA
and 1B versions, which have a 21-inch-diameter booster stage at the bottom but
are 13.5 inches in diameter along the remainder of their lengths, the Block IIA

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version has a 21-inch diameter along its entire length. The increase in diameter
to a uniform 21 inches provides more room for rocket fuel, permitting the Block
IIA version to have a burnout velocity (a maximum velocity, reached at the time
the propulsion stack burns out) that is greater than that of the Block IA and IB
versions, as well as a larger-diameter kinetic warhead. The United States and
Japan have cooperated in developing certain technologies for the Block IIA
version, with Japan funding a significant share of the effort

SM-2 and SM-6 Terminal Interceptors

The SM-2 Block IV is designed to intercept ballistic missiles inside the

atmosphere (i.e., endoatmospheric intercept), during the terminal phase of an
enemy ballistic missile’s flight. It is equipped with a blast fragmentation
warhead. The existing inventory of SM-2 Block IVs—72 as of February 2012—
was created by modifying SM-2s that were originally built to intercept aircraft
and ASCMs. A total of 75 SM-2 Block IVs were modified, and at least 3 were
used in BMD flight tests. MDA and the Navy are now procuring a more-capable
terminal-phase (endo-atmospheric intercept) BMD interceptor based on the SM-
6 air defence missile (the successor to the SM-2 air defence missile). The SM-6
is a dual-capability missile that can be used for either air defence (i.e.,
countering aircraft and anti-ship cruise missiles) or ballistic missile defence.

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 CHAPTER 10
WORKING OF AEGIS BALLISTIC MISSILE SYSTEM

As the Target missile enters the atmosphere the infra-red satellites detect the
missile and the information is transferred to the ground-based Defense system.
As the Engine of the enemy ballistic missiles conclude its burn, the infra-red
Satellites cannot detect the missile. The ship's AN/SPY-1 radar finds the
ballistic missile target and the Aegis weapon system calculates a solution on the
target. When the missile is ordered to launch, the Aerojet MK 72 solid-fuel 
rocket booster launches the SM-3 out of the ship's Mark 41 vertical launching 
system (VLS). The missile then establishes communication with the launching
ship. Once the booster burns out, it detaches, and the Aerojet MK 104 solid-
fuel dual thrust rocket motor (DTRM) takes over propulsion through the
atmosphere. The missile continues to receive mid-course guidance information
from the launching ship and is aided by GPS data. The ATK MK 136 solid-
fueled third-stage rocket motor (TSRM) fires after the second stage burns out,
and it takes the missile above the atmosphere (if needed). The TSRM is pulse
fired and provides propulsion for the SM-3 until 30 seconds to intercept. The
war head intercepts with the enemy Missile and it is destroyed.

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 CHAPTER 11
ADVANTAGES

• Security
• Saves lives
• Saves the environment
• Can be used as anti- satellite missiles
• Can prevent attacks by way of interception
• Can be used for long ranges
• Mobility
• Launch on remote
• Improved discrimination of threats using infrared and radio data
• Capability against more advanced treats

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 CHAPTER 12
LIMITATIONS

 Less numbers of BMD-capable Aegis ships.

 Technical Risk and Test and Evaluation Issues.
 Discrimination of threats
 Expensive
 Employment of potentially effective countermeasures
 Effectiveness
 Technology could be stolen
 Could start an arms race

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 CHAPTER 13
CONCLUSION

Missile defence systems are necessary for preventing enemy threats. Currently
Ballistic missiles are among the most expensive of single- use weapons, up to
several million dollars. However, they are cheaper than human pilots when total
training and infrastructure costs are taken into account.

Guidance system used in Ballistic missile is a complex system which involves

several systems working in random. It is essential that guidance system is
properly designed for accurate interception of targets

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 REFERENCE

 CSIS MISSILE DEFENCE PROGRAM

https://missilethreat.csis.org/system/aegis/
 AEGIS BALLISTIC MISSILE DEFENCE SYSTEM
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aegis_Ballistic_Missile_Defense_Syste
m
 PROJECTILE WAR HEAD
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightweight_Exo-
Atmospheric_Projectile
 MISSILE DEFENCE ADVOCASY
https://missiledefenseadvocacy.org/alert/the-future-of-aegis-bmd/
 MISSILES AND MISSILE DEFENCE ISSUES
https://www.armscontrol.org/taxonomy/term/142

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