An equipment malfunction likely caused the communications disruption between a squadron of 50 Minuteman ICBMs and their overseers in Wyoming on Oct, 23, Lt. Gen. Frank Klotz, head of Air Force Global Strike Command, said Tuesday. “Our initial sense is this is an equipment malfunction that took place in one of the launch control centers within that particular squadron. When that launch control center could be isolated and shut down, normal communications, normal status monitoring with the 50 missiles was restored,” Klotz told reporters in Washington, D.C. Klotz said an operational review board is working to determine the incident’s root cause and identify materiel and procedural solutions to prevent its recurrence. He expects to receive the review’s findings before month’s end. Klotz also praised airmen’s response to the malfunction. “They worked in a very disciplined, expert fashion” to restore the communications within about 46 minutes and secure the missiles in the field, he said.
Air Force Using AI to Plan Storage for Munitions
Nov. 13, 2025
When lawmakers and outside experts turn their attention to how the U.S. military can use of artificial intelligence, they tend to focus on weapons systems—the most consequential and risk-laden use cases—and on generative AI. But behind the scenes, the Air Force is already using machine learning algorithms to help solve…
