This is a list of ships sunk by missiles. Ships have been sunk by unguided projectiles for many centuries, but the introduction of guided missiles during World War II changed the dynamics of naval warfare. 1943 saw the first ships to be sunk by guided weapons, launched from aircraft, although it was not until 1967 that a ship was sunk by a missile launched from a ship outside a test environment. Both of these were warships, but missiles have also attacked merchant ships. More than fifty other vessels have been sunk, in war and in peace.