DOD and DOE officials who comprise the Nuclear Weapons Council have decided that the reliable replacement warhead program—an effort to determine the feasibility and advisability of developing a warhead to replace those in the existing stockpile—would not need underground testing. The NWC believes that proceeding with an RRW program will “ensure the long-term reliability of the stockpile and enable us to establish a safer and more secure nuclear deterrent.” According to an NRC statement, the RRW would also enable the US to reduce the size of its stockpile “by increasing confidence in the infrastructure to produce weapons.” The NWC still has to choose a preferred design from the two submitted by the Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore national labs. And, Congress has to approve any decision to move into development.
Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach said the service must improve its readiness in his first public remarks as Air Force Chief of Staff, made during a ceremony marking his ascension to the service’s top job Nov. 18.
