What is Taurus Missile, Range, Speed, Features

Table of Contents☰

Taurus KEPD-350 Latest News

Sweden has taken a key step in strengthening its air force’s long-range strike capabilities by selecting the Taurus KEPD-350 air-launched cruise missile for integration with its Gripen fighter jets.

About Taurus KEPD-350

It is a modular, air-launched, long-range, precision-guided cruise missile.
It is designed and produced by Taurus Systems GmbH, a joint venture between Germany’s MBDA Deutschland GmbH and Sweden’s Saab Bofors Dynamics.
It can penetrate through dense air defence systems and destroy the hard and deeply buried stationary and semi-stationary military targets on ground.
The missile entered operational service in 2005.
The missile is used by air forces in Germany, Spain, and South Korea, among others.

Taurus KEPD-350 Features

Measuring 5 meters in length and with a wingspan of 2.1 meters, the missile weighs approximately 1,400 kilograms.
It has a range of more than 500 km.
It is powered by a turbofan engine, which provides the missile with a cruise speed of about Mach 0.6 to 0.95 at very low altitudes.
The missile is made of modular sections which can be configured based on the individual missions.
Its electronic systems are also modular.
It is suitable for day and night and all-weather deployment.
Navigation of the missile is controlled through the Tri-Tec navigation system.
It combines data from an inertial navigation system (INS), MIL-global positioning system (GPS), terrain reference navigation (TRN), and infrared seeker based image based navigation (IBN) sensors.