“Nothing To Do With World Events”: Two Unarmed Minuteman III ICBMs Slated For Launch Next Week

The US Air Force Global Strike Command is preparing to conduct two separate tests of unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles from north Vandenberg Space Force Base in California next week. 

“Consistent with previous test launches, this routine, unarmed ICBM test launch will validate and verify the effectiveness, readiness and accuracy of the weapon system,” Vandenberg Space Force Base wrote in a statement. 

Here are the tests:

The first test is scheduled for June 4 from 12:01 a.m. to June 4, 2024, 6:01 a.m., Pacific Time from north Vandenberg.

The second test is scheduled for June 6 from 12:01 a.m. to June 6, 6:01 a.m., Pacific Time from north Vandenberg.

Test re-entry vehicles are expected to travel approximately 4,200 miles southwest of California to the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. 

“A previous test launch slated for February 2024 had to be postponed due to some needed repairs at Reagan Test Site,” said Col. Chris Cruise, 377th Test and Evaluation Group commander.

Cruise continued, “This summer’s test launch was already scheduled so it made sense to do them both while all the necessary personnel were in place. The launches were scheduled well in advance and have nothing to do with world events.”

Late last year, America’s 450 ICBM silos across five states began a major $96 billion overhaul – part of a nuclear modernization effort. The military as a whole is being modernized as war rages on in Eastern Europe and is set to possibly expand with the Biden administration ‘green-lighting‘ Ukraine to strike inside Russia with US weapons. The conflict between Israel and Hamas is another concern, as well as instability in the South China Sea. 

The rise of a multi-polar world signifies that the war cycle is accelerating.