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An unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile is scheduled for launch from North Vandenberg Wednesday morning |
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VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – An unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile is scheduled for launch from North Vandenberg Wednesday morning as part of the Force Development Evaluation Program. The six-hour launch window is from 12:01 a.m. to 6:01 a.m. PST. The purpose of the launch is to verify the continued reliability and accuracy of the Minuteman III ICBM.
A task force from the 341st Space Wing, Malmstrom AFB, Mont., led by Capt. Brian Koch, will launch the missile under the direction of the 576th Flight Test Squadron here. Capt. David Franklin, 576th FLTS, is the launch director.
Col. Frank Gallegos, 30th Space Wing commander, is the spacelift commander. The mission director is Lt. Col. Anthony Baylock, 576th FLTS commander. Members of the 595th Space Group here installed tracking, telemetry and command destruct systems on the missile to collect data and meet safety requirements.
The missile's single unarmed re-entry vehicle is expected to travel approximately 4,200 miles in about 30 minutes, hitting a pre-determined target at the Kwajalein Missile Range in the western chain of the Marshall Islands. The nation’s ICBMs are a key component of global stability – a safe, secure and affordable weapon system that delivers deterrence.
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