Reports claim that UK Prime Minister Theresa May was aware of a malfunction that occurred during a June 2016 test-launch of an unarmed Trident II D5 missile when she spoke and voted in favor of renewing the Trident program last June. The Trident ballistic missile was tested as part of a certification program for the...
On January 18, 2017, the Israeli Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) formally transferred the first Arrow 3 interceptors to the Israeli Air Force in a ceremony marking the induction of the system into the country’s missile defense shield. Arrow 3 will coordinate with and complement the existing Arrow 2 system, providing defense from medium-range ballistic missiles....
Japan is preparing to launch a missile surveillance satellite on January 26, 2017 in an effort to upgrade its surveillance network amidst North Korea’s growing missile capabilities. The satellite, named the Kirameki No. 2, is to be launched from the Tanegashima Space Center in the Kagoshima Prefecture. The Kirameki No. 2 will use an X-band communication,...
The deployment of the THAAD missile defense system to South Korea may be delayed due to internal corporate concerns of the Lotte Group, which currently owns the golf course on which the THAAD unit is proposed to be stationed. Strong Chinese opposition to the THAAD deployment may be motivating the Lotte Group to reconsider its decision. In November,...
On January 17, 2017, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that it had conducted a successful test of its SS-27 ‘Topol-M’ ICBM. The Topol-M was fired from the Plesetsk launch site on Monday and reportedly hit its intended target on the Kamachatka peninsula “with high precision,” according to the Defense Ministry. The test was reportedly conducted to...
On January 9, 2017, LTG (ret.) Michael Flynn, the soon-to-be national security advisor to President-Elect Donald Trump, met with his South Korean counterpart Kim Kwan-jin to reaffirm their countries’ joint decision to deploy a THAAD missile defense system to the South Korean peninsula. The decision to deploy THAAD comes as a response to the growing...
Media reports indicate that Norway may begin contributing to NATO’s European missile defense system, despite its earlier opposition to the NATO effort when it was originally proposed in the early 2000s. While Norway has no plans to acquire missile defense interceptors, the country can integrate the sensors onboard five radar-equipped warships into NATO’s BMD architecture. Norway’s radars...
The Air Force is preparing for its January 19 launch of the Space-Based Infrared System (SBIRS) GEO-3 satellite. The satellite will be part of a constellation used to provide missile warning by identifying the infrared heat signatures of missiles during launch. This information is used to alert U.S. missile defense systems. The GEO-3 will be carried...
The Navy destroyer U.S.S. Pinckney (DDG-91) conducted two flight tests of the Tomahawk Block IV missile. The first test used the Launch Platform Mission Planning system which allowed the Pinckney, located off the coast of southern California, to use targeting data provided by U.S. Fleet Forces Command in Norfolk, Virginia. The second test used the...
According to a U.S. defense official, the Sea-Based X-Band Radar (SBX) system has left its port in Hawaii to monitor a potential North Korean ICBM test. The SBX can provide high-resolution radar imagery of the North Korean test, potentially providing a better understanding of the missile’s profile and capabilities. The SBX could also help U.S. Ground-based Interceptors...
