US conducts test launch of Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile

2023-04-19 20:31:04

The US Air Force conducted a test launch of a Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The website of the base notes that such tests are carried out periodically and are part of routine activities that have nothing to do with current world events.

The Minuteman III ballistic missile has been in service with the US Air Force since 1970, it has been repeatedly improved. The last tests of this missile were carried out in August 2022. The first tests of the latest Sentinel missile, which should replace the Minuteman III, took place in the United States in March 2023. Sentinel is seen as the most operational part of the US nuclear triad (the nuclear triad consists of land, sea and air components).

“This test launch is part of a routine and periodic activity designed to demonstrate that the United States nuclear deterrent is safe, reliable, and effective in meeting 21st-century threats and reassuring our allies. Similar tests have already been carried out more than 300 times, and this test is not the result of current world events, ”the Vandenberg press service said in a statement.

The press release states that the rocket was launched at 5:11 am local time (15:11 Moscow time). The Minuteman III missile was commanded to launch using the TACAMO secure communication channel system. The signal came from a Boeing E-6 Mercury aircraft, the press service notes. The ICBM flew about 4.2 thousand miles (6.7 thousand km) to the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands.

The press service also said that Minuteman III missiles will be completely replaced by Sentinel missiles by the mid-2030s. On April 18, the US Air Force asked Congress for $4.4 billion to replace ICBMs.

On March 13, the United States tested a prototype AGM-183A air-launched hypersonic missile (ARRW). A fully operational prototype projectile manufactured by Lockheed Martin was released by the B-52H Stratofortress bomber. The task of the tests was a comprehensive clarification of the characteristics of weapons. The Congress said that the tests did not bring the desired results.

Erdni Kagaltynov