Delivery Systems & Nuclear Triad

Navy Strategic Systems Programs Friday awarded Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co. two contract modifications related to the procurement of Trident II (D5) missiles. One modification is worth $146.3 million and entails a fixed-price-incentive, cost-plus-incentive-fee and cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to a previously awarded un-priced letter contract for D5 life extension development and production and D5 deployed systems […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 9/19/2014 With a large bill to modernize the bomber- and ground-based legs of the nuclear triad looming, Air Force officials are discussing the potential creation of a national strategic deterrent fund, similar to the Sea-Based Deterrence Fund the Navy has proposed as a way to pay for its Ohio-class nuclear submarine […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 9/19/2014 As the Air Force is downsizing, $500 million will reinvigorate Global Strike Command’s Future Years Defense Program, and the command will bring in more than 1,100 people during the next several years as part of its Force Improvement Program (FIP), officials said this week. Officials announced the FIP in August […]

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said this week that the production of 12 Ohio-class submarine replacements could drain the Navy’s shipbuilding budget for longer than a decade. Officials have publicly announced the Ohio replacement as a priority, and a recent Center for Strategic Budget Analysis report estimated the Ohio replacement as the second most expensive current […]

With work on the Fiscal Year 2015 Defense Authorization Act pushed back until after the November Congressional elections, House and Senate Armed Services Committee members have begun meeting for “pre-conference” talks, but Senate authorizers will be absent today when House members of the Strategic Forces subcommittee gather for discussions. According to Congressional aides, Senate authorizers […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 After the expiration of the current five-year Future Years Defense Program (FYDP), ongoing development of the long-range strike bomber (LRS-B) and replacement of 14 Ohio-class submarines could cause a significant dent in the post-Fiscal Year 2019 defense budget, according to a report by Todd Harrison, senior fellow of defense budget […]

After the expiration of the current Future Years Defense Program (FYDP), ongoing development of the long-range strike bomber (LRS-B) and replacement of 14 Ohio-class submarines and could draw would-be funding from other areas of the post-FY 2019 defense budget, according to Todd Harrison, senior fellow of defense budget studies at the Center for Strategic and […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 The Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center expects to release a Request for Proposal for new reentry system testing equipment this fall, according to AFNWC spokesperson Kendahl Johnson. The information was released this week as industry gathered at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico for an industry day for the […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 The Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico will host an industry day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 4 to discuss a Reentry System Field Support Equipment (RFSE) Request for Information and draft Request for Proposals released this week. Topics to be […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 Northrop Grumman has been awarded a sole-source contract modification that will assist the United States SSBN program in becoming New START compliant. The Defense Department Monday announced a $7.6 million addition to a $113-million firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-incentive-fee/cost-plus-fixed-fee contract awarded to Northrop Grumman in December. Part of a larger effort to improve […]

The following interview with Maj. Gen. Garrett Harencak, the Air Force Assistant Chief of Staff for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration (A10), was conducted by Nuclear Security & Deterrence Monitor Reporter Brian Bradley. NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 There’s been a lot of attention focused on the cheating scandal in the Air Force missileer ranks and recovering […]

The Defense Department Monday announced a $7.6 million award to Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Northrop Grumman Systems Corp. that is part of a larger effort to improve the U.S. and U.K.’s shared Advanced Launcher Development Program and modernize the existing British Trident II Underwater Launcher System. Specifically, the award comes as a modification to a firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-incentive-fee, […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 8/22/2014 After completing in July an Analysis of Alternatives for the ICBM leg of the nuclear triad, the Air Force has reportedly settled on a “hybrid” model, which would incorporate the fundamental design, communication structure and existing launch silos for the Minuteman III while swapping out older rocket motors and antiquated […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 8/22/2014 Contractors on Aug. 5 demolished the last 10 of 50 deactivated Minuteman III silos previously operated by the 564th Missile Squadron at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana to comply with the New START Treaty, Global Strike Command said. The dismantlement comes two months after workers finished reconfiguring the multi-headed […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 8/22/2014 As Airmen face uncertainty related to the Air Force budget and service downsizing, the service has moved $50 million to shore up immediate, near-term nuclear facility upgrades and to compensate additional personnel to staff crucial jobs within Global Strike Command. The service has requested $350 million for GSC’s five-year-long Future […]

The Air Force has recommended today’s 450 Minuteman III’s be replaced by up to 420 “hybrid” ground-based strategic deterrents by 2030, according to reports. The concept is a result of a GBSD Analysis of Alternatives completed in July and has been tentatively approved in recent meetings with the Office of the Secretary of Defense, ?an […]

A new study of U.S. defense policies suggests that plans to modernize the nation’s nuclear deterrent are “unaffordable” under current budget constraints and calls for “reasonable decisions about the appropriate structure for U.S. nuclear forces.” The study, “Ensuring a Strong U.S. Defense for the Future: The National Defense Panel Review of the 2014 Quadrennial Defense […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 6/27/2014 The Air Force is set to begin briefing leadership on the results of its analysis of alternatives for replacing the current fleet of Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missiles, Global Strike Command chief Lt. Gen. Stephen Wilson said this week. The analysis covers a variety of options for the new “Ground-Based […]

The Air Force is set to begin briefing leadership on the results of its analysis of alternatives for replacing the current fleet of Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missiles, Global Strike Command chief Lt. Gen. Stephen Wilson said yesterday. The analysis covers a variety of options for the new “Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent” starting in about 2030, […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 3/28/2014 Nine Air Force leaders have been removed from command and the commander of the 341st Missile Wing at Malmstrom Air Force Base has resigned as a result of an investigation into widespread cheating among the ICBM force at Malmstrom. Air Force leaders unveiled the results of an Office of Special […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 2/28/2014 The nuclear triad will survive the proposed Pentagon spending cuts in President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2015 budget request, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said this week. Offering a preview of the President’s budget request to reporters at the Pentagon Feb. 24, Hagel outlined a series of spending cuts across the Department […]

The following interview with retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Donald Alston was conducted by Nuclear Security & Deterrence Monitor Editor Todd Jacobson. NS&D Monitor 2/28/2014 In 2007, you were tasked with repairing the Air Force’s nuclear mission after a series of miscues, including the unauthorized transport of nuclear weapons on the wing of a bomber, […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 2/14/2014 As the Air Force considers extending the life of the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile, it should strongly look at keeping the ICBM in service past 2030 through incremental upgrades, according to a recently released study authored by the RAND Corp. The study, titled “The Future of the U.S. Intercontinental […]

Kenneth Fletcher NS&D Monitor 2/14/2014 The Air Force is launching a new effort, dubbed the “force improvement program,” in the wake of a cheating scandal involving officers that work with the nation’s ICBMs. The new effort comes as two reviews are underway that were launched by Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel last month in response to […]

With questions swirling from the Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee about the Air Force’s need for a follow-on nuclear air-launched cruise missile, Strategic Command chief Adm. Cecil Haney voiced his support for the mission need for the weapon. “That’s an important facet of our deterrent, to have that capability, to have that standoff capability […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 6/6/2014 The Air Force is aiming to strengthen its nuclear mission, and announced plans last week to elevate several nuclear-related commands. Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James is proposing to increase leadership of Global Strike Command from a three-star general to a four-star general, and would also increase the Air Force […]

Officials say it’s not in response to Russia’s nuclear exercises last week, but U.S. strategic forces began a massive nuclear response drill yesterday dubbed “Global Lightning 14.” According to a statement from U.S. Strategic Command, the exercise is slated to include 10 B-52 Stratofortresses and up to six B-2 Spirit bombers to “demonstrate flexibility and […]

Calling the refurbishment of the air-launched cruise missile (ALCM) a “priority,” Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.) was equally critical of the Administration’s decision this year to delay the replacement of the weapon in a speech yesterday at the Reserve Officers Association. “The Air Force will continue to extend the life of the existing ALCM, but eventually […]

Did you miss 60 Minutes’ look into the problems facing the nation’s ICBM fleet Sunday? You can watch Lesley Stahl’s report online on CBS’ website. Stahl interviewed Maj. Gen. Jack Weinstein, the commander of the 20th Air Force, which oversees the 450 ICBMs spread out between Malmstrom, Minot and F.E. Warren Air Force Bases.  

The Department of Defense yesterday announced its nuclear force structure implementation plan under the New START Treaty yesterday, outlining a plan that would include reductions across the three legs of the nuclear triad. Under the plan, the Pentagon will trim the size of its deployed intercontinental ballistic missile force by 50 ICBMs but preserve each […]