On the night of November 7, 2018, on the eve of elections to both chambers of the National Congress, the US military conducted a flight test of an intercontinental ballistic missile Minuteman III.
The launch of the carrier was carried out from a silo launcher from a missile range near the Vandenberg military base, which is located in sunny California.
The press service of the Pentagon emphasizes that the missile’s flight to the target area was carried out without a nuclear charge, and the test was conducted to confirm the reliability of the carrier systems and the training of strategic missile nuclear forces.
Intercontinental ballistic missile Minuteman III is designed to destroy the most important enemy targets and large concentrations of military units.
According to open sources, the United States has 450 Minuteman III missiles, on which 550 nuclear warheads are installed. Rockets are regularly upgraded. Warheads, guidance and control systems, power plants are being replaced.
It is assumed that the rocket will remain in service with the US armed forces until 2020.
During the test, the Minuteman III rocket flew about 8,000 kilometers and hit a conventional target near the Kwajalein Atoll (Marshall Islands) in the central part of the Pacific Ocean.
It is also reported that the US military annually conduct from Vandenberg to four test launches of Minuteman III.
The previous test, conducted on July 31, 2018, was considered unsuccessful. The change in the calculation of the launch control was forced to issue a command to self-destruct the rocket in flight after receiving telemetry data about abnormal deviations in the operation of the nuclear weapons carrier systems.
