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Third Interceptor Missile Placed In Silo In Alaska
Washington (AFP) Sep 16, 2004 A third interceptor missile was lowered into an underground silo in Alaska this week, the latest addition to a ground-based missile defense system that will become operational this year, the US Defense Department said Thursday. The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) said the interceptor missile went into a launch silo at Fort Greely, Alaska on Wednesday. Three more interceptor missiles will be fielded by mid-October at Fort Greely, and two others later this year at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, it said. "Although the system will initially have a limited capability when it becomes operational later this year, it will mark the first time the United States has a capability to defend the entire country against a limited attack by a long-range ballistic missile," the agency said in a statement. A prominent critic, Democratic Senator Jack Reed, said the agency's claim that the missiles will provide an effective national defense against long-range missiles "strained credibility." "The agency has never done a single test of the interceptor, or the radar needed to guide the interceptor, or the incredibly complex command and control system to see if they can actually shoot down an enemy missile," he said. Flight tests have been cancelled or delayed six times since December 2002 because of technical problems and test failures, and the first real test is not scheduled until late November -- "safely after the elections," Reed said. Nevertheless, the administration planned to announce the deployment of "this untested, problem-ridden system" next month before the elections, he said, accusing the administration of "a cynical approach to our nation's defense". Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Related Links SpaceDaily Search SpaceDaily Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express Learn about missile defense at SpaceWar.com Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com All about missiles at SpaceWar.com Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com
Missile Defense Program Moves Forward
Washington DC (AFPS) Jan 12, 2006The Missile Defense Agency continues to move forward in its efforts to protect the nation against a ballistic missile attack. The eighth ground-based interceptor missile was lowered into its underground silo at Fort Greely, Alaska, Dec. 18, 2005. |
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