Method for optimizing the image-assisted automatic navigation of an unmanned missile, comprising the following steps: a) creating a mission plan containing navigation data of a planned flight route on the basis of satellite or aerial image recordings by means of a mission planning computer, wherein the navigation data contain information about selected topological or topographic structures; b) loading the mission plan into a mission computer of the unmanned missile; c) attaching the unmanned missile to a carrier aircraft; d) flying the flight route by means of the carrier aircraft, wherein the navigation of the unmanned missile uses navigation data of the carrier aircraft; e) carrying out an image analysis in the unmanned missile during the flight by virtue of images of the path ahead, produced by an image production device of the unmanned missile, being analysed in respect of topological or topographic structures present therein and the information obtained thus about the analysed topological or topographic structures being stored together with the image data, the flight attitude data and the position data in a memory device; f) transferring the data from the memory device into a computer; g) creating a three-dimensional reference model for those topological or topographic structures from the satellite or aerial image recordings which were identified in the image analysis in step e); h) calculating a two-dimensional view of a topological or topographic structure on the basis of the three-dimensional reference model of this topological or topographic structure at a predetermined point on the flight route, taking into account the flight attitude of the missile at this point; i) comparing the two-dimensional view of the topological or topographic structure with the topological or topographic structure detected at this point of the flight route in the image analysis in step e) and determining the correspondence quality; j) modifying the reference model should the correspondence quality lie below a predetermined value; k) repeating steps h) to j). a) creating a mission plan containing navigation data of a planned flight route on the basis of satellite or aerial image recordings by means of a mission planning computer, wherein the navigation data contain information about selected topological or topographic structures; b) loading the mission plan into a mission computer of the unmanned missile; c) attaching the unmanned missile to a carrier aircraft; d) flying the flight route by means of the carrier aircraft, wherein the navigation of the unmanned missile uses navigation data of the carrier aircraft; e) carrying out an image analysis in the unmanned missile during the flight by virtue of images of the path ahead, produced by an image production device of the unmanned missile, being analysed in respect of topological or topographic structures present therein and the information obtained thus about the analysed topological or topographic structures being stored together with the image data, the flight attitude data and the position data in a memory device; f) transferring the data from the memory device into a computer; g) creating a three-dimensional reference model for those topological or topographic structures from the satellite or aerial image recordings which were identified in the image analysis in step e); h) calculating a two-dimensional view of a topological or topographic structure on the basis of the three-dimensional reference model of this topological or topographic structure at a predetermined point on the flight route, taking into account the flight attitude of the missile at this point; i) comparing the two-dimensional view of the topological or topographic structure with the topological or topographic structure detected at this point of the flight route in the image analysis in step e) and determining the correspondence quality; j) modifying the reference model should the correspondence quality lie below a predetermined value; k) repeating steps h) to j).