U.S. Tests Minuteman

The U.S. Air Force yesterday conducted a successful test of an unarmed Minuteman 3 ICBM, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Sept. 14, 2005).

The missile took off at 12:01 a.m. from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California and hit a target 4,800 miles away on the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. 

The purpose of the test was to gather data and to determine whether the Mark 2 re-entry vehicle was effective on the Minuteman, Air Force officials said.

The United States has approximately 500 Minuteman missiles deployed in Montana, North Dakota and Wyoming, according to AP (Associated Press/San Jose Mercury News, Feb. 16).

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