U.S.-made short-range ballistic missile, adopted by the U.S. Army in 1972 and subsequently by the armies of West Germany, Italy, Belgium, The Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Israel.

The Lance is about 20 feet (6 m) long and is launched from a light trailer or a modified personnel carrier. It is propelled by a liquid-fueled rocket engine to ranges of 5 to 75 miles (8 to 120 km), depending on the warhead. …

The Lance missile was deployed with U.S. Army forces from 1972 to 1991, largely in West Germany. It was also deployed with British, Belgian, Dutch, Italian, and West German armies. More than 2,300 were purchased at a cost of over $2 billion (in constant 1996 dollars). The Lance had a range of 3 to 78 miles (5 to 125 kilometers), although its accuracy decreased at longer ranges. The Lance was a dual-capable weapon, that is it could carry either a conventional or a nuclear warhead. The nuclear warhead, the W70, had a yield of 1-100 kilotons and was produced both as a standard fission weapon and an enhanced radiation (ER) weapon.