Vandenberg Tests Another Unarmed Nuke

Its second test in two weeks, Vandenberg Air Force Base announced Wednesday its plans to launch another unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile, known as an ICBM, between 11:00 p.m. Thursday and 5:00 a.m. Friday. This week’s launch is managed by the 576th Flight Test Squadron — the country’s only test team focused entirely on developing ICBMs — which includes crew members from North Dakota’s Minot Air Force Base.

[UPDATE] The ICBM was launched on February 25 at 11:01 p.m. PST. A reentry vehicle containing operational test telemetry equipment landed 4,200 miles away at the Kwajalein Atoll. The Vandenberg launch was accomplished with the 91st Missile Wing of the Air Force Global Strike Command at Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota. Of the second launch in the space of a week, Lt. Col. Brandon Schraeder, commander of the 91st, said, “Ultimately, these launches are the nation’s most visible demonstration of the ICBM capability.”