It seems we missed a relatively important feature of the last test of the Missile Defense Agency’s ground-based ballistic missile interceptor system in that it provided the first occasion for airmen at Vandenberg AFB, Calif., to actually launch an interceptor missile from a Vandy MDA silo. “This was a huge launch for us,” said Col. Jack Weinstein, commander of 30th Space Wing at Vandenberg. The Pentagon plans ultimately to deploy two interceptors in silos at Vandenberg, in addition to up to 16 in Alaska.
Pentagon Task Force, FAA to Test Counter-Drone Laser
March 7, 2026
The Pentagon’s counter-drone task force announced it would conduct a high-energy laser test with the Federal Aviation Administration less than a month after the use of a military counter-drone laser on the southwest border prompted the FAA to shut down the airspace over El Paso, Texas.