June 14, 2010: Thanks to Iranian and North Korean ballistic
missiles, the U.S. Navy is now scrambling for a way to enable
its warships to reload their missile launch tubes at sea. For
over two decades, this was not seen as a priority. But with the
widespread use of the Aegis anti-missile system on ships, and
the prospect of having to shoot down a lot of hostile ballistic
missiles, while also fending off hostile aircraft, the need for
reloading VLS cells at sea is now, well, important. Over the
last three decades, the United States, and later several other
nations, have adopted the eight cell VLS (Vertical Launch
System), where anti-aircraft, anti-ship or cruise missiles are
launched directly from the vertical launch tubes (cells) just
beneath the decks of warships. The launch tubes also contain
electronic connections that enable the crew to monitor the
condition and readiness of the missiles. Most cells contain only
one missile, although the smaller Sea Sparrow anti-aircraft
missile can fit four to a VLS cell