The Air Force had to call off at the last minute a planned July 19 launch of an unarmed Minuteman III ICBM at Vandenberg AFB, Calif. The flight was supposed to test the missile’s reliability, said the Air Force. The launch delay is expected to be brief, and the ICBM could fly as early as Thursday. The missile’s three warheads will be hurled toward a target in the Marshall Islands area. The launch authority is the 576th Flight Test Squadron at Vandenberg.
As Air Force leaders consider concepts of operations for Collaborative Combat Aircraft, sustainment in the field—and easing that support by using standard parts and limiting variants—should be a key consideration, according to a new study from AFA's Mitchell Institute of Aerospace Studies.