Surface-to-surface missile

A surface-to-surface missile (SSM) or ground-to-ground missile (GGM)^[1] is a missile designed to be launched from the ground or the sea and strike targets on land or at sea. They may be fired from hand-held or vehicle mounted devices, from fixed installations, or from a ship. They are often powered by a rocket engine or sometimes fired by an explosive charge, since the launching platform is typically stationary or moving slowly. They usually have fins and/or wings for lift and stability, although hyper-velocity or short-ranged missiles may use body lift or fly a ballistic trajectory.^[2] The V-1 flying bomb was the first operational surface-to-surface missile.

Contemporary surface-to-surface missiles are usually guided. An unguided surface-to-surface missile is usually referred to as a rocket (for example, an RPG-7 or M72 LAW is an anti-tank rocket whereas a BGM-71 TOW or AT-2 Swatter is an anti-tank guided missile).

Examples of surface-to-surface missile include the MGM-140 ATACMS, the Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB)^[3][4][5] and the Long Range Precision Fires (LRPF).^[6][7][8]