surface-to-air

[ sur-fis-too-air ]

adjective

(of a missile, message, etc.) capable of traveling from the surface of the earth to a target in the atmosphere.

adverb

from the surface of the earth to a target in the atmosphere: an antimissile missile fired surface-to-air.

Origin of surface-to-air

First recorded in 1945–50

Words Nearby surface-to-air

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use surface-to-air in a sentence

“SA-6s are the least of our concerns for CAS in the modern age of surface-to-air missile system proliferation,” the official said.
American Warplane’s Forgotten Nazi Past | Dave Majumdar | October 12, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
It was lunchtime when a tracked launcher with four SA-11 surface-to-air missiles rolled into town and parked on Karapetyan Street.
MH17 Missile Can't Hide From These Internet Sleuths | Eliot Higgins | August 2, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
He still required men who knew how to operate heavy weapons such as, say, surface-to-air missile batteries.
Putin’s Number One Gunman in Ukraine Warns Him of Possible Defeat | Anna Nemtsova | July 25, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Orders were given to use a new weapon, an S-75 Dvina surface-to-air missile, or SAM.
Russia’s Missiles Stung the World Long Before MH17 | Clive Irving | July 20, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
But Predators are vulnerable to even the most obsolete surface-to-air missiles or air-to-air fighter aircraft.
The Killer Drone Goes Stealthy—Just in Time for a New Cold War | Zach Rosenberg | April 16, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST

Air defenses include surface-to-air missiles, antiaircraft artillery, and early warning and aircraft control sites.
Area Handbook for Romania | Eugene K. Keefe, Donald W. Bernier, Lyle E. Brenneman, William Giloane, James M. Moore, and Neda A. Walpole
If a surface-to-air missile capability did exist at that time, the Chinese would have supplied the necessary replacements.
Area Handbook for Albania | Eugene K. Keefe
Air defense units received Soviet equipment between 1948 and 1961, including that required at a few surface-to-air missile sites.
Area Handbook for Albania | Eugene K. Keefe

British Dictionary definitions for surface-to-air

surface-to-air

adjective

of or relating to a missile launched from the surface of the earth against airborne targets

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Browse