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Japan awards MHI to produce upgraded ship-launched Type 12 and sub-launched cruise missile.
Japan’s Ministry of Defense said it has placed mass-production orders with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for an upgraded, ship-launched Type 12 anti-ship missile and a new cruise missile fired from submarine torpedo tubes. The awards accelerate Japan’s standoff arsenal, aiming to hit hostile ships or land targets early and at distance as part of a broader counterstrike posture.
On 7 October, 2025, Japan’s Ministry of Defense announced two mass-production awards to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for an upgraded ship-launched Type 12 anti-ship missile and a torpedo-tube-launched cruise missile for submarines. The move fits Tokyo’s push to field long-range standoff options able to engage hostile forces early and at distance, as reported by the Japanese MoD. Against a backdrop of tightening regional maritime competition and growing strike inventories among potential adversaries, these programs aim to close reaction gaps at sea and around the home islands. The announcement underscores a shift from small-batch prototyping to scaled delivery with near-term fleet impact.
These synchronized awards consolidate Japan’s transition from incremental trials to tangible fleet capacity, pairing a modernized Type 12 for surface ships with a covert submarine-borne strike option that exploits existing torpedo-tube infrastructure (Picture source: Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force)
The defense products at the center of these awards are complementary. The improved Type 12, adapted for ship launch, extends the reach and flexibility of Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force surface combatants, allowing precision anti-ship, and potentially land-attack, profiles from safe stand-off ranges. The unnamed submarine-launched cruise missile is designed for ejection from standard torpedo tubes, giving attack submarines a covert, reloadable strike option without structural changes such as adding a vertical launch system. Together, they broaden the JMSDF’s layered sea-control and denial toolkit across surface and subsurface domains.
Operationally, the Type 12 family has evolved from a shore-based surface-to-ship missile into multiple variants tailored to different platforms, with iterative improvements to range, guidance, and networked targeting to meet modern maritime engagements. Submarine torpedo-tube missile employment is already practiced globally, Japan’s Taigei class has operated tube-launched Harpoon, but reload tempo and magazine sharing with torpedoes impose trade-offs. Moving to a domestically produced cruise missile compatible with existing tubes preserves stealth and platform availability while accelerating fielding timelines. The development pathway reflects Japan’s recent emphasis on rapid transition from R&D to serial production under its defense buildup plan.
In comparative terms, an upgraded, domestically produced Type 12 offers Japan assured supply, tailored software and seeker updates, and integration aligned to JMSDF combat systems, contrasting with foreign solutions like Tomahawk that require import, certification, and doctrine adaptation. Versus legacy Harpoon, the new missiles are intended to deliver longer reach, improved survivability in contested electromagnetic environments, and multi-target flexibility through better networking. Torpedo-tube launch preserves submarine stealth advantages, though it cannot match the salvo capacity and reload speed of purpose-built vertical launch systems; the trade is faster near-term deployment without hull redesign. The combined portfolio increases dilemma creation for adversary fleets by complicating their air and missile defense planning across multiple vectors.
Strategically, these contracts tighten Japan’s deterrent posture in the first and second island chains by expanding credible counter-intervention firepower at sea. Geopolitically, they signal sustained industrial self-reliance and interoperability with allies while reducing exposure to supply disruptions. Geostrategically, greater stand-off reach supports sea-lane security and reinforces denial bubbles around approaches to the home islands, raising the threshold for coercive probes. Militarily, distributing long-range strike across surface combatants and submarines diversifies magazines, enhances survivability under saturation attack, and compresses an adversary’s operational timelines in littoral and blue-water scenarios.
Financially and contractually, the Japanese MoD describes these as mass-production awards under the current defense buildup plan, prioritizing rapid acquisition of domestically produced standoff munitions. The submarine-launched guided missile contract with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries was signed on September 1, 2025, and the improved ship-launched Type 12 contract, also with MHI, on October 6, 2025. Budgetary figures were not disclosed in the announcement, but the move from development to serial production indicates secured program funding lines and near-term delivery objectives. MHI is the latest and designated prime for both efforts.
These synchronized awards consolidate Japan’s transition from incremental trials to tangible fleet capacity, pairing a modernized Type 12 for surface ships with a covert submarine-borne strike option that exploits existing torpedo-tube infrastructure. By anchoring production at home and accelerating timelines, Tokyo strengthens credible deterrence at sea and reduces strategic risk in a contested maritime environment.
Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.