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The U.S. Navy tested defense contractor Raytheon’s Standard Missile-2 target detecting device (SM-2 Block IIIB). The test was the lowest altitude intercept using the new device so far. Fired from the USS STERETT, the missile took on multiple targets under simulated threat situations. (Source)

Raytheon’s Ron Shields said, “These tests demonstrate the reliability and accuracy of SM-2 as it continues to evolve. The SM-2′s ability to successfully employ this new target detecting device against challenging targets enhances the missile’s usefulness to the warfighter.”

The Navy deployed the SM-2 Block IIIB, which has a range of 90 nautical miles, for long-range ship self-defense.

**The U.S. Air Force announced that an unarmed Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) was successfully test-fired earlier this week. Launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, the ICBM hit its target over the Pacific Ocean near the Marshall Islands.

Lt. Col. Lesa Toler, 576th Flight Test Squadron commander and the mission director, said, “The fact that we can randomly select an on-alert operational ICBM from any missile wing and launch it without making any modifications to the components to hit a bulls-eye target is a testament to the system’s reliability.” (AP)

**The U.S. Navy has announced the successful interception of a ballistic missile target over the Pacific Ocean, the first Third Fleet operation firing to use the Standard Missile-3 against a ballistic target.

Vice Adm. Samuel J. Locklear, Commander, U.S. Third Fleet, called the engagement “extraordinary” and that it “highlights the successful transition from developmental test flights to operational fleet execution and demonstrates the viability of the Maritime BMD Concept of Operations.” (SPX)

**Sources report that Bahrain is conducting a missile defense exercise with the U.S. According to Bahrain’s official news agency, the exercise is a joint effort with the U.S. Central Command to “boost military cooperation.” The Persian Gulf country has a cooperative agreement with our country’s military. (AFP)

**Earlier this week, a Japanese newspaper reported that the government was “moving towards” launching an early warning missile defense satellite. The newspaper said it received a draft of the ballistic missile defense plan, which contains information about deploying an early warning satellite that would monitor and warn against offensive missile launches. (UPI)

 
The Navy successfully launched two Trident II D5 Fleet Ballistic Missiles from the USS Louisiana in the Pacific Ocean, according to SPX. This is the Trident’s 124th consecutive successful test launch since 1989.

Melanie A. Sloane, vice president of Fleet Ballistic Missile programs at Lockheed Martin, said “In this recent test, Navy Strategic Systems Programs has again demonstrated the reliability and credibility of the Fleet Ballistic Missile…A long partnership combined with disciplined performance by the entire Navy and industry team in every aspect of this critical program has made each and every one of these 124 test launches a success.”

The Department of Defense’s National Command Authority requires that our Navy conduct missile tests to make sure systems are working properly and safely. OHIO-class submarines and British VANGUARD-class submarines are equipped with D5 missiles.

Russia also successfully test-launched a missile, this one a long-range Topol missile designed to fly under the radar of ground-based missile detection systems. Is this a response to the U.S.’s missile defense agreements with Poland and the Czech Republic?

(Sources: SPX and Reuters)

Defense contractor Raytheon was awarded a $21.2 million Navy contract for components of the NATO SEASPARROW MK48 Guided Missile Vertical Launch System (GMVLS).
 
Raytheon will deliver 68 MK20 MOD 1 canisters and 156 spare frangible covers, which are critical components of the MK48 GMVLS.
 
“The MK48 GMVLS provides essential missile defense capabilities to protect and defend our international allies,” Raytheon Integrated defense Systems’ Charles “Tom” Bush, vice president of Seapower Capability Systems, said in a press release. “Raytheon is committed to providing reliable and effective system components that warfighters can depend on, the first time and every time.”
 
Raytheon will begin work at the company’s Seapower Capability Center in Portsmouth, R.I..
 
(Photo source: Raytheon)