Cruise missile

A cruise missile is a guided missile which uses a lifting wing and most often a jet propulsion system to allow sustained flight. Cruise missiles are, in essence, unmanned aircraft. They are generally designed to carry a large conventional or nuclear warhead many hundreds of miles with excellent accuracy. Modern cruise missiles normally travel at subsonic speeds, are self-navigating, and fly low in order to avoid radar detection.

See also

• precision guided munition
• buzz bomb
• Armored Box Launcher
• Vertical Launch System