Turkish company Roketsan displays SOM missile at ADEX 2022.

Roketsan had a powerful presence at Azerbaijan International Defence Exhibition (ADEX) exhibition which was held between 6 – 8 September 2022, with its latest products and systems. One of those products is the SOM missile.

SOM missile on Roketsan's booth at ADEX 2022, Azerbaijan. (Picture source: Army Recognition)

The SOM is a next-generation autonomous, stealth, high precision cruise missile developed by TÜBİTAK SAGE, Defence Research and Development Institute of Turkey.

Developed since 2006, the SOM is Turkey's first domestic guided missile for striking both stationary and moving targets at a stand-off distance of over 180 kilometers.

The SOM stand-off cruise missile is a family of launch and leave precision strike weapons against both land or sea targets. It uses GPS as its primary mode of guidance complemented by an advanced Inertial Navigation System and a radar-based Terrain Referenced Navigation system, allowing the missile to skim the terrain during its flight in order to evade local defence systems.

According to the developer, it features advanced geometry and aerodynamics over similar missile systems, as well as lightweight composite components that minimize the radar cross-section of the missile.

A terminal stage infrared imager detects the individual target by matching its signature with a pre-loaded database of similar targets allowing for precision strike. It can also be used to provide image-based midcourse navigation by taking snapshots of waypoints and comparing them against predicted position to update the navigation system.

Thus, if GPS capability is denied or degraded, the missile can follow its waypoints using infrared based terrain updates. The missile includes a two-way datalink that makes possible to change the task in flight.

The basic design of the missile includes a fuselage designed specifically to fit in the internal weapons bays of the Joint Strike Fighter. It is intended to achieve high accuracy in striking military targets like command and control facilities, SAM sites, parked aircraft and surface ships.