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.
Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi met U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on Jan. 15 as the two nations look to further solidify their ties in the face of growing Chinese and North Korean threats.
