The Air Force on Wednesday conducted a Minuteman III ICBM flight test from Vandenberg AFB, Calif., over the Pacific Ocean. According to officials with Vandenberg’s 30th Space Wing, the missile’s single unarmed re-entry test vehicle traveled approximately 4,190 miles before hitting its pre-determined impact point near the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. This flight test was one of several that the Air Force holds annually to ensure the readiness and reliability of the Minuteman III fleet. This mission was also the first flight test for the 576th Flight Test Squadron since its realignment under Air Force Global Strike Command late last year. “Our team is dedicated to ensuring a safe, secure, and effective combat-ready ICBM force,” said Col. Carl DeKemper, the 576th FLTS commander. (Vandenberg release)
After years of serving as the bill-payer for other Pentagon priorities, munitions stockpiles are poised to get a major boost from the $150 billion reconciliation package unveiled by lawmakers in Congress this week, along with the defense industrial base to...