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| Anti-Missile System |
| 2004-09-30 |
| A third interceptor missile was lowered into an underground silo in Alaska this week, the latest addition to a ground-based missile defense system that will become operational this year, the US Defense Department said Thursday. The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) said the interceptor missile went into a launch silo at Fort Greely, Alaska on Wednesday. Three more interceptor missiles will be fielded by mid-October at Fort Greely, and two others later this year at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, it said. "Although the system will initially have a limited capability when it becomes operational later this year, it will mark the first time the United States has a capability to defend the entire country against a limited attack by a long-range ballistic missile," the agency said in a statement. |
| Posted by:Anonymoose |
| #4 How about Minuteman IV? A very serious defense indeed. Then change the name of the PeaceKeeper to PeaceMaker so everybody gets the picture. And I guess maybe change the name of the Trident D-4 to DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-09-30 6:05:48 PM |
| #3 It's a little complicated. The boosters are by Lockheed and Orbital Sciences. Lockheed just gives them a series of initials (PLV, etc.). OS has used names like Minotaur and Taurus for predecessors to the current boosters, but hasn't given the current one a name. Then Raytheon, which makes the actual kill vehicle, just calls it EKV. (Because of program conditions, we say it means "Employee Kill Vehicle"). So, these jobbers are a combination of components from three equal competitors. All others like Minuteman, Nike, Titan, Harpoon, etc., were all by a single prime contractor. The difficulty is not so much the name as Who gets to name it. It will probably stay a non-name like GMB for a while. If there is significant chance of the program being killed, then it will acquire a name in self-defense. (cf. MX-1 -> Peacekeeper, DIVAD -> Sgt. York). |
| Posted by: jackal 2004-09-30 1:28:18 PM |
| #2 Ship- I nominate 'Valkyrie'. VERY cool.*S* Mike |
| Posted by: Mike Kozlowski 2004-09-30 10:24:26 AM |
| #1 Do these missles have a name yet? |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-09-30 10:01:42 AM |