An unarmed U.S. Air Force Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile is to launch overnight Tuesday in an operational test at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. Photo by Airman 1st Class Yvonne Morales/U.S. Air Force/UPI
The U.S. military is scheduled to launch an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile from California overnight in a display of the U.S. nuclear forces’ readiness, officials said.
The Air Force Global Strike Command launch is to occur during the window of 11:47 p.m. PT Tuesday and 5:47 a.m. Wednesday from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in North Vandenberg, Calif. Advertisement
The launch is a routine test that was scheduled years in advance and is done to “validate and verify the effectiveness, readiness and accuracy of the weapon system,” Vandenberg Space Force Base said in an August statement announcing the launch.
Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters during a press conference Tuesday that the United States has transmitted a prelaunch notification to the Hague Code of Conduct and that it has notified the Russian government in accordance to existing bilateral obligations.
“The purpose of the ICBM test launch program is to demonstrate the readiness of U.S. nuclear forces and provide confidence in the lethality and effectiveness of the nation’s nuclear deterrent,” he said.
The Vandenberg Space Force Base is home to Air Force Global Strike Command’s 576th Flight Test Squadron, which is the only dedicated ICMB test squadron in the United States. Advertisement
The launch comes amid growing tensions with Russia over its war in Ukraine, and North Korea which has repeatedly launched a flurry of its own missiles and most recently failed its second attempt to put a satellite into orbit.
On Sunday, North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency reported that Pyongyang had simulated a tactical nuclear strike with mock warheads in a warning to the United States of its nuclear capabilities.
