09/25/2014: The sea base is an increasingly important part of the engagement against land targets.
This is true of Ospreys bringing Marines ashore and of the use of precision strike weapons.
Indeed, the Navy’s role leveraging the surface, subsurface and air-breathing assets to distribute strike across the strike fleet will go up as the weapons revolution evolves over the next twenty years.
This slideshow highlights the use of land attack Tomahawks in Valiant Shield 2014.
Credit: III Marine Expeditionary Force / Marine Corps Installations Pacific:9/17/14
- The Arleigh Burke class guided missile destroyer USS Mustin (DDG 89) is seen firing a Tomahawk Land Attack Missile simulating a joint strike on an enemy shore facility during Valiant Shield 2014.
- In the third and fourth photos, the Ticonderoga class guided missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG 54) fires a Tomahawk land attack missile (TLAM) during a live-fire missile exercise as part of Valiant Shield 2014.
Valiant Shield is a U.S.-only exercise integrating an estimated 18,000 U.S. Navy, Air Force, Army and Marine Corps personnel, more than 200 aircraft and 19 surface ships, offering real world joint operational experience to develop capabilities that provide a full range of options to defend U.S. interests and those of its allies and partners.