US launches unarmed nuclear missile to showcase ‘readiness’
An unarmed nuclear missile launches from Vandenberg Space Force Base Wednesday. Photo from the Vandenberg Space Force Base website
LOS ANGELES – An unarmed intercontinental ballistic missile launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base Wednesday, a test planned years ago to “demonstrate the readiness of US nuclear forces and provide confidence in the lethality and effectiveness of the nation’s nuclear deterrent,” according to the Air Force Global Strike Command.
The test launch of the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile was set between 11:01 p.m. Tuesday and 5:01 a.m. Wednesday from the base in Santa Barbara County. The launch was expected to be visible from Los Angeles, and from Oregon to Nevada to Utah, Arizona and Mexico.
Per international agreements, the United States notified Russia and more than 140 nations that are members of the Hague Code of Conduct Against Ballistic Missile Proliferation about the test launch.
The United States test launched a Minuteman III missile from Vandenberg on Nov. 5. It traveled about 4,200 miles to the Marshall Islands, according to media reports. It landed at the US Army Space and Missile Defense Command’s Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site.
“These tests are demonstrative of what Striker Airmen bring to the fight if called by the president,” said Gen. Thomas A. Bussiere, commander of the Air Force Global Strike Command, in a statement on the November launch.
“An airborne launch validates the survivability of our ICBMs (intercontinental ballistic missiles), which serve as the strategic backstop of our nation’s defense and defense of allies and partners.”
The Air Force plans to start replacing the Minuteman III with a modernized arsenal of LG-35A Sentinel missiles in 2029, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The United States has 5,040 nuclear warheads, the second-largest number in the world, according to data from the Federation of American Scientists, and reported by the Times. Russia has the largest number of nuclear warheads with 5,580. (CNS)
