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Air Power International Strike Command examined an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile within the early hours of Nov. 5, the service introduced.
The take a look at, the newest in a sequence that been carried out at common intervals for many years, got here as Russian President Vladimir Putin has touted the event of two new nuclear weapons and President Donald Trump had steered in latest days that the U.S. may resume nuclear testing.
The ICBM launched from Vandenberg Area Base, Calif., at 1:35 a.m. Pacific Time and traveled some 4,200 miles to a take a look at vary within the Pacific after receiving launch orders from an airborne nuclear command and management airplane.
The take a look at, often known as a Glory Journey or GT, was commanded from a U.S. Navy E-6B Mercury take a look at plane, moderately than missileers at Vandenberg, who’re on standby. The U.S. navy take a look at fires the missile roughly annually from the Navy command and management airplane to make sure Minuteman III missiles may be launched within the occasion of a nuclear assault or different incident that might disable a ground-based launch management middle.
AFGSC Airmen from the 625th Strategic Operations Squadron used the so-called Airborne Launch Management System aboard the E-6B.
“GT 254 is not only a launch—it’s a complete evaluation to confirm and validate the ICBM system’s means to carry out its essential mission,” Lt. Col. Karrie Wray, commander of the 576th Flight Check Squadron, a devoted ICBM take a look at unit, stated in a information launch. “The information collected in the course of the take a look at is invaluable in making certain the continued reliability and accuracy of the ICBM weapon system.”
For Minuteman III assessments, the Air Power pulls its missiles from the fleet of some 400 operational ICBMs. The Nov. 5 take a look at used one from F.E. Warren Air Power Base, Wyo., and the missile was geared up with a single unarmed reentry automobile that carried telemetry instrumentation—formally often known as an Instrumented Joint Check Meeting—as an alternative of a warhead, service officers stated.
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The reentry automobile impacted the Reagan Check Website on the Kwajalein Atoll within the Marshall Islands roughly half-hour later. The Reagan Check Website is supplied with superior sensors to watch the influence of ICBM assessments.
The launch was overseen by the 377th Check and Analysis Group, which is chargeable for planning and executing the launch and compiling information afterwards in regards to the take a look at.
“This take a look at validated the reliability, adaptability, and modularity of the weapon system,” Col. Dustin Harmon, 377th Check and Analysis Group commander, stated in a launch.
The Minuteman III was initially supposed to get replaced within the 2030s, however delays with the brand new Senintel ICBM’s infrastructure have led the Air Power official to counsel the Minuteman III might should be stored in service longer, doubtlessly even till 2050.
An unclassified model of a Authorities Accountability Workplace report launched to the general public in September famous that the Air Power initially stated the Minuteman III would finish its service life in 2026. “Now, dealing with delays to Sentinel, the Air Power is evaluating choices to proceed working Minuteman III by way of 2050. The Minuteman III Program Workplace concluded that operation of Minuteman III till 2050 is possible,” the GAO wrote in its report.
The LGM-35A Sentinel is scheduled to interchange the fielded Minuteman III missiles on a one-for-one foundation and was beforehand anticipated to begin getting into service in 2030. That now seems unlikely, and contractor Northrop Grumman stated in July it agreed to a “re-establishment of this system baseline” with the Air Power.
“As we modernize to the Sentinel weapon system, we should proceed to take care of the readiness of the present Minuteman III fleet,” stated Gen. S.L. Davis, the brand new commander of Air Power International Strike Commander, in a launch. “GT 254 helps fulfill that dedication, making certain its continued accuracy and reliability.”
The Division of Protection promoted the launch on social media, posting on X, “Underneath [Trump] and [Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth], now we have PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.” Minuteman III assessments have been carried out below the administrations of each events.
The launch got here days after Trump steered on a number of events that the U.S. might resume nuclear weapons testing. The U.S. has not performed a nuclear weapons take a look at since 1992.
In an interview that aired Nov. 2 on CBS’s “60 Minutes,” Trump stated that Russia and China had been conducting underground assessments of nuclear weapons, and in social media posts as lately as Nov. 5, Trump has stated the U.S. ought to take a look at on “an equal foundation.”
“Russia’s testing, and China’s testing, however they don’t speak about it,” Trump claimed throughout his tv interview with out offering proof.
Russia and China say they’ve been observing a moratorium on underground assessments for many years.
The State Division has stated in arms management reviews that Russia is believed to have carried out some small nuclear experiments between 1996 and 2019 which have produced a “nuclear yield.” In 2020, the State Division stated it had “considerations” that China may additionally be finishing up related nuclear assessments with very low explosive energy.
The White Home has not supplied particulars on what kind of assessments Trump had in thoughts, and whether or not they embody the very low-yield assessments that Russia and China might have carried out.
Some in Washington are skeptical that Trump was foreshadowing a return to substantial nuclear assessments.
“The likelihood that we’ll be blowing up the Bikini Atoll once more—the president simply says stuff,” Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), the rating member on the Home Everlasting Choose Committee on Intelligence, stated in a Nov. 4 look earlier than the Council on Overseas Relations. “We’ve a triad. We’ve obtained 3 ways to ship strategic nuclear weapons. … Should you begin testing once more, if you happen to begin getting again right into a Chilly Battle mindset … all you actually obtain is an unstrategic focus and a surprising amount of cash.”
Audio of this text is dropped at you by the Air & Area Forces Affiliation, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their households. Discover out extra at afa.org