SM-6

The Standard Missile 6 — a multi-role ship/ground/air-launched interceptor that fuses long-range air defense, terminal ballistic-missile defense, and anti-surface strike into a single round, and the first US weapon to engage an anti-ship ballistic missile in combat.

Overview

The SM-6, formally the RIM-174 Standard Extended Range Active Missile (ERAM), is a Raytheon-built interceptor that arms the US Navy’s Aegis fleet, the Army’s Typhon ground launchers, and — in its air-launched AIM-174B guise — carrier-borne Super Hornets. By merging the airframe of the SM-2, the booster stack of the SM-3, and an AMRAAM-derived active radar seeker, the weapon delivers layered anti-air warfare, sea-based terminal ballistic-missile defense, and offensive anti-ship/land-attack capability in a single magazine round, according to the CSIS Missile Threat profile. It is the only US fleet weapon that covers all three mission sets, a fact Raytheon and the Navy have used to streamline shipboard magazines across the surface force.

🔒 The full SM-6 file is for BattlePolicy Pro members. Below the line: development history, design and capabilities, variants, the combat record, advantages and limitations, comparable systems, outlook, the full specifications table, our sourcing, and the analyst assessment — procurement, suppliers and the BattlePolicy verdict. Unlock the full file with BattlePolicy Pro →