	Background

The National Defense Authorization Act for FY1996 called on the Department of Defense (DOD) to embark upon an initiative to develop cruise missile defense (CMD) programs emphasizing operational efficiency and affordability. Advanced cruise missiles (CMs)âthose designed with stealthy capabilities to evade detectionâwere noted as a prominent threat prompting the need for effective CMD. Whether or not the Pentagon will be able to integrate CMD plans to a point of effective interoperability is an important question. Joint Theater Air and Missile Defense Organization (JTAMDO)

JTAMDO was established in 1997 to ensure the coordination of CMD and ballistic missile defense programs as well as to integrate DOD's theater air and missile defense requirements. Decoupling the fire control radar from the weapon could improve capabilities against stealthy CMs by providing numerous and supporting surveillance perspectives. Current cost-exchange ratios associated with CMs favor attackers over defenders; cruise missiles can be cheap and defenses are costly. Inexpensive but proven "jamming" technology (e.g., high-power microwaves) that can disrupt CM guidance systems might be a potentially useful approach.
Congress has expressed interest in cruise missile defense for years. Cruise missiles (CMs) are essentially unmanned attack aircraftâvehicles composed of an airframe, propulsion system, guidance system, and weapons payload. They may possess highly complex navigation and targeting systems and thus have the capability to sustain low, terrain-hugging flight paths as well as strike with great accuracy. CMs can be launched from numerous platformsâair-, land-, or sea-basedâand they can be outfitted with either conventional weapons or weapons of mass destruction (WMD). The Department of Defense is pursuing several initiatives that seek to improve capabilities against an unpredictable cruise missile threat. This report will be updated as events warrant.