Seaslug (missile)

Seaslug was a first-generation British surface-to-air missile developed by Armstrong Whitworth for the Royal Navy, with origins in the 1944 LOPGAP project. It was meant to engage high-altitude targets such as reconnaissance aircraft or bombers before they could launch stand-off weapons, and it was fitted only to the eight County-class destroyers, which were built around the system. It entered operational service in 1961 and stayed in use until the early 1980s, including the 1982 Falklands War, when HMS Antrim fired one at an air target and missed, though it was later used against surface targets. The Mark 1 had a solid-fuel Foxhound sustainer motor, Gosling booster motors and a 200 lb blast warhead, and the Mark 2, in service from 1971, had improved low-altitude performance and a limited anti-ship capability. Sea Dart gradually replaced Seaslug as the County-class destroyers were withdrawn during the 1980s.