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The M41 TOW improved target acquisition system (ITAS) is a block upgrade to the M220 ground/high-mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicle (HMMWV)-mounted TOW 2 missile system. The TOW ITAS is currently being fielded to airborne, air assault, and light infantry forces throughout the active and reserve components of the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps (where it is called the SABER).
The BGM-71 TOW (“Tube-launched, Optically tracked, Wire-guided”) is an American anti-tank missile. First produced in 1970, the TOW is one of the most widely used anti-tank guided missiles. Design and development A U.S. Army soldier in 1964, with the first concept mock-up of Redstone Arsenal’s proposed future HAW system (Heavy Antitank Weapon). The HAW ultimately resulted […]
The Tube launched, Optically tracked, Wire-command link guided missile weapon system was a soldier-portable and vehicle-mounted, long-range anti-armour weapons system. The weapon consisted of a launcher with tracking and control capabilities, and the TOW 2 guided missile, encased in a launch container. The TOW 2 was an upgrade of the original ...
- Tow 2 Missile System Development
- Vehicle and air-mounted Missile Systems
- Tow Anti-Armour Missile
- Tow 2A Anti-Tank Missile
- Tow 2A Bunker Buster Missile
- Tow 2B Anti-Tank Missile
- Tow 2B Aero Anti-Tank Missile
- Tow 2B RF Anti-Tank Missile
- Itas Improved Target Acquisition System
- Tow FF Fire-And-Forget Missile
The TOW missile system has been in service since 1970 and more than 700,000 TOW weapon systems were delivered to the US Army and allied military forces to date. Its production versions include TOW 2A (BGM-71E), which entered production in 1987 with over 118,000 missiles delivered. TOW 2B (BGM-71F) entered production in 1991 with more than 40,000 mi...
The missiles can be fired from the ground using a tripod-mounted launch tube or installed on vehicles. The TOW missile system can be fitted as a single-tube pedestal mount on military vehicles or as two-tube or four-tube under-armour systems on vehicles such as the improved TOW vehicle M901, Desert Warrior, Piranha, US Marine Corps LAV, Dardo Hitfi...
The missile has command to line-of-sight guidance. The weapons operator uses a telescopic sight to view a point on the target and then fires the missile. The missile has a two-stage ATK (Alliant Techsystems) solid propellant rocket motor. The operator continues to view and track the target through the sight. Guidance signals from the guidance compu...
For penetration of tanks protected with explosive reactive armour (ERA), TOW 2A is equipped with a tandem warhead. A small disrupter charge detonates the reactive armour and allows the main shaped charge to penetrate the main armour.
A ‘bunker buster’ variant of the TOW 2A, to defeat field fortifications, bunkers and urban structures, has been developed and fielded by the US Army. The TOW 2A bunker buster has a range of 3,750m. It is scheduled to arm the US Army’s anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) variant of the Stryker combat vehicle family.
TOW 2B operates in a ‘flyover shoot down’ top attack mode, unlike other versions which are direct attack. It features a dual-mode target sensor designed by Thales (formerly Thomson-Thorn) Missile Electronics, which includes laser profilometer and magnetic sensor, and a new warhead section, produced by Aerojet. It resembles the TOW 2A but without th...
An extended range TOW 2B missile, TOW 2B Aero, has a range of 4.5km, which is achieved in only a few seconds longer than the flight time of TOW 2B to 3.75km. Two modifications are made to the TOW 2B. A longer wire is required for the longer range and a new aerodynamic nose has been fitted to allow stable, controllable flight to the extended range, ...
Another development of the TOW 2B Aero, the wireless TOW 2B RF is in production. TOW 2B RF is modified with a one-way, stealthy radio-frequency command link, which dispenses with the wire link and gives a range of 4.5km. The system is compatible with current launchers.
In 1999, Raytheon Company was awarded a US Army full-rate production contract for the TOW improved target acquisition system (ITAS) for the HMMWV launcher and the ground mounted TOW. ITAS uses a thermal imager based on a standard advanced dewar assembly (SADA II) focal plane array, eye-safe laser rangefinder, and a gunner-aided target tracker. ITAS...
In September 2000, the US Army awarded an EMD (engineering and manufacturing development) contract for a wireless TOW fire-and-forget missile to Raytheon Systems Company. However, the US Army cancelled the project in 2002. TOW FF was to have an advanced imaging infrared staring focal plane array seeker.
On 2 May 1972, the TOW missile made military history by becoming the first American-made guided missile to be fired in combat by U.S. soldiers. During the fighting at Kontum in South Vietnam on that date, the 1st Combat Aerial TOW Team, equipped with the XM26 TOW subsystem mounted on a UH-1B HUEY helicopter, destroyed a total of four M-41 tanks, one 2½ -ton truck, and a 105mm howitzer.
BGM-71 / M-220 Tube-launched, Optically tracked, Wire-guided missile (TOW) The TOW anti-tank missile of Iran-Contra fame was introduced for service in the US Army in 1970. Current versions are ...
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BGM-71D is the first of a new generation TOW missile with improved guidance and new rocket motor. The TOW-2 has a single HEAT warhead with a much improved penetration over the I-TOW. TOW-2A. BGM-71E is similar to the TOW-2, but has a precursor charge for improved performance against explosive reactive armor. TOW-2B.
