U.S. M4 Lacrosse Missile

U.S. M4 Lacrosse Missile. . The Lacrosse was a short-range ballistic missile of the Cold War, which proved to be less than successful. Development began in 1947, but the missile did not enter service until July 1959. The M4 Lacrosse Missile System was designed to provide precision fire against enemy strong points. The missile was mounted and transported on a standard 2 1/2-ton truck. To prepare the missile for firing, the warhead was attached to a solid-fuel rocket motor. Then, the four large wings and four small fins, which steered the missile, were snapped into place. A Forward Observation Team fed the target information into a Jeep-mounted computer and the missile was guided to its target by radio signals. Lacrosse was plagued by its unreliability, heavy maintenance requirements and it proved to be very susceptible to electronic jamming. If the missile was successfully jammed, the Forward Observer Team would lose control of the missile and it could easily land on friendly troops. Because of the Lacrosse's many problems, the Army cancelled procurement in January 1961 only 16 months after it was introduced. By February 1964, the Lacrosse was out of service., Length - 19 ft. - 5.8 m , Weight - 2,300 lbs. - 1045 kg , Range - 20 miles -32 km , Warhead - Conventional 245-lb. high explosive, shape charge and 10 kT Nuclear , CCN# 126918/126919