Air Force Space Command’s analysis of alternatives for a next-generation land-based strategic deterrent recently concluded that the Minuteman III ICBM should remain in service beyond the previously planned retirement date of 2020, AFSPC’s acting commander said Tuesday. Current upgrades to the existing Minuteman III fleet will leave US Strategic Command with “a lot of residual capability in the platform,” said Lt. Gen. Frank G. Klotz, AFSPC vice commander, at a Washington, D.C., event sponsored by the National Defense University Foundation. Klotz noted that the Air Force has a wide range of MMIII improvement programs in progress that previously were designed to extend Minuteman III service lift to 2020.
While the U.S. and its allies up their efforts to build out multi-orbit, multi-constellation satellite communications that are harder for an enemy to disrupt, officials noted technical and cost challenges, particularly for the user in the field.