FREEDOM BONER: Navy F-18 Hornet Chases A Badass Tomahawk Missile During Target Practice

U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A! Back-to-back World War rings for Uncle same and raising the freedom championship banner into the rafters since 1776. If you’re looking for a throbbing freedom erection, check out this incredible video from the Navy of a test off of San Niolas Island, California. Thanks to some kickass new technology, the Navy is able to fire sRaytheon Tomahawk land attack missiles (a.k.a “TLAMs”) at moving target at sea. Business Insider explains:

TLAMs are already used for land attack missions against static targets. By converting TLAMs into missiles capable of penetrating thickly-armored vessels at sea, the Navy plugs a serious gap in its current weapons capabilities. According to USNI News, TLAMs that have been converted into anti-ship missiles that could be used aboard the Navy’s newer guided-missile destroyers, which cannot currently use the service’s antiquated RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missile.

The new converted TLAMs would have a range of almost 1,000 nautical miles, allowing the US to maintain a considerable edge over rival naval powers. One of China’s most threatening new military advancements is its development of its own advanced anti-ship cruise missiles. However, these missiles would only have half the range of a converted TLAM.

This is part of the U.S Department of Defense’s “Third Offset Strategies” which aims to develop new long-range weapons. Deputy Secretary of Defense Bob Work called it “a potentially game changing capability for not a lot of cost.”

Here’s the video of the test on a dummy container ship, which includes a pretty birds-eye view from a F-18 Hornet chasing the missile. Note that there isn’t a warhead on the missile, which means no big BOOM. But still…. The technology and camera angles are SO FREAKING AWESOME. Watch until the very end, when the TLAM scares off a bunch of pigeons on the cargo ship. It had me dying in laughter:

Here are a couple GIFs that Business Insider made of the strike. BADASS:

U-S-A. U-S-A. U-S-A.

Brandon Wenerd is BroBible's publisher, writing on this site since 2009. He writes about sports, music, men's fashion, outdoor gear, traveling, skiing, and epic adventures. Based in Los Angeles, he also enjoys interviewing athletes and entertainers. Proud Penn State alum, former New Yorker. Email: brandon@brobible.com