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Standoff weapons (or stand-off weapons) aremissiles orbombs which may be launched from a distance sufficient to allow attacking personnel to evade the effect of the weapon or defensive fire from the target area. Typically, they are used against land- and sea-based targets in an offensive operation. The name is derived from their ability to engage the target while standing off outside the range at which the defenders are likely to engage the attacker. Typical stand-off weapons includecruise missiles,glide bombs andshort-range ballistic missiles.
Standoff missiles belong to the larger class ofranged weapons and are complemented by theStand-in Attack Weapon (SiAW), a missile with a shorter range that is fired by an aircraft after penetrating enemy airspace.
