The Missile Defense Agency recently notched an important win in its effort to produce a workable system. Officials declared success of the latest sea-based “hit to kill” intercept of a target that had separated from its booster. The feat was a first, said MDA. In the test, a Navy Aegis cruiser, USS Lake Erie, launched a Standard Missile-3 against a medium-range dummy missile target. The Aegis crew fired its intercept missile about four minutes after detecting the threat missile. Six minutes later, the SM-3 intercepted the target warhead more than 100 miles above the Pacific Ocean, destroying it on impact. Raytheon produces the SM-3, and the Lockheed Martin-Orbital team supplied and launched the target missile. It was the SM-3’s sixth successful test, with only one failure.
Watchdog Says Military Can Make Cyber Ops More Efficient
Sept. 17, 2025
The Government Accountability Office called for paring down the military's sprawling cyber enterprise in a recent report, amid renewed discussion about standing up a separate cyber force.
