U.S. ICBM Reduction Starts Next Month

Beginning next month, the U.S. Air Force will begin to remove 50 ICBMs from deployment, Inside the Air Force reported today (see GSN, Oct. 30, 2006).

The reduction was suggested in the 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review and represents a shift away from what it called a “one size fits all” idea of nuclear deterrence.  A smaller fleet would be more tailored to specific threats, including nonstate terrorist groups, according to the military plan.

Speaking at a National Defense University Foundation sponsored event Wednesday, Gen. Kevin Chilton, head of the Air Force Space Command, said that once the reduction is complete the U.S. will have a total of 450 Minuteman 3 missiles deployed at three missile bases.

The reduction at the bases in North Dakota, Montana and Wyoming is expected to take less than a year, he said.

The missile removal would facilitate a 12-year extension of a Minuteman 3 test program in which a handful of missiles are test-fired each year over the Pacific Ocean to ensure their continued viability (see GSN, Feb. 8).

“A key part of deterrence is to be able to show that you can have confidence that if the decision is ever taken, the system’s going to work,” Chilton said (Inside the Air Force, May 25).

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