The Air Force's new ICBM is nearly ready to fly, but there's nowhere to put it
6 hours ago
- #Defense Budget
- #Nuclear Weapons
- #Military Technology
- The US Air Force's Sentinel ICBM is scheduled for its first test flight next year.
- The Sentinel will replace the aging Minuteman III fleet, with operational deployment expected in the early 2030s.
- Construction of 450 underground silos for the Sentinel missiles is ongoing, but completion timelines and costs remain unclear.
- The expiration of the New START treaty allows the Sentinel to potentially carry multiple warheads (MIRVs) instead of just one.
- The Sentinel program's budget surged from $77.7 billion to $141 billion, prompting a 'Nunn-McCurdy breach' review.
- The Pentagon deemed the Sentinel program critical to national security, preventing its cancellation despite budget overruns.