Yesterday the United States Air Force tested it’s Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile by sending it on a 5,250 mile run before hitting its target in an ocean area 230 Nautical miles from Guam. This test was significant because the missile traveled 1000 miles further than traditional tests. In order to gather the necessary results from the test, the Air Force teamed up with a Navy submarine that helped attain data about the detonation. The purpose of the launch was to determine how operational and accurate the missile system would prove to be. Captain Yeats headed up this testing procedure and said, “This mission was different in the fact that our normal target area is pre-configured for our re-entry vehicle scoring, to gather the data we needed in this new location, we joined with the Navy and one of their oceanographic vessels.” Sending a missile over five thousand miles is a difficult task. It is much more difficult to maintain direct accuracy when sending a missile that far. That is why the Navy became involved, to provide results as to the accuracy of this long-range missile. In order to do so, the Navy deployed 16 rafts to help pinpoint the exact location that the missile made impact and detonated.
Tests such as these help ensure that our nations defenses are functioning at their peak capabilities. Without routine Air Force testing, our weapons would quickly become outdated and ineffective.
