Point-defense and area-defense missiles show why role is a better basis for classifying fictional carriers than range alone. Sea Slug's old area-defense range overlaps modern point-defense weapons, while faster threats force today's interceptors to engage farther out. Sea Viper and Sea Ceptor variants also cross older range boundaries as boosters, packing density, and intended employment change. A threat moving at roughly Mach 7 can cover about 48 kilometers in twenty seconds, so even a 45-kilometer engagement may provide very little defensive time. The same acceleration makes the very short reach of traditional close-in weapon systems increasingly problematic. A modern missile can reach as far as an older area-defense system while still serving mainly as self-protection. The useful distinction is whether a weapon protects its own ship, a task group, or a wider force, since technology will soon overtake a fixed kilometer figure.
Chapter · 3:30-11:55
Why warship definitions should follow roles, not ranges
Changing missile performance shows why durable warship definitions should describe the role a system performs rather than rely on a fixed range threshold.