SAM, Short for Surface to Air Missiles also known as Ground to Air Missile (GTAM) are basically anti aircraft missiles, The development of surface to air missile was carried out in Germany during late world war II.
SAMs can be portable or fixed types. The movable ones known as Man Portable Air Defense Systems (MANPADS) can be moved around and fired using over the shoulder launchers by an individual. It has a range of around 5 kms. Larger SAMs are fitted over portable launchers or based in immovable installations , the range of larger SAMs vary, few SAMs like the Russian S 400 has a range of over 400km SAMs form an integral part of the defense system onboard the warships.
One of the most well known MANPADS is SAM 7 Missile. It was developed by the USSR in the year 1959. It is shoulder launched, and has a range of around 3 kms. SAM-7 was first used in combat in the year 1968 and it is still widely used
HAWK (Homing All the Way Killer) system used by US army offers medium range, low – medium altitude air defense. All weather Day – Night capability of this system makes it highly deadly and dependable. It is used by the Marine Corps since 1960′s, HAWK has undergone many developments since then. HAWK missile units are teamed along with a set of radars to acquire and track the aerial target, command post and IFF system. After the target is acquired, the fire control locks on to the target with a tracking radar and missile will be launched either automatically or manually. The Hawk system has the capacity to fire one missile every 2.5 seconds and each battery can hold up to 50 missiles. On the present day more than 32 countries around the world use different versions of HAWK SAMs.