The Air Force and Northrop Grumman Monday said they have completed a full assembly of the LGM-35A Sentinel future intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in its “operational orientation,” setting the stage for initial flight testing in 2027.
The “vertical stacking” demonstration at Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB), Calif. was completed in parallel with a critical design review (CDR) for Sentinel. Northrop Grumman said the demo confirmed “the missile’s design maturity and hardware testing meet Air Force requirements for performance, safety and schedule for flight test in 2027.”
“This [vertical stacking] proves all missile stages, propulsion elements, the shroud and associated components have been fully integrated into a single missile configuration,” Northrop Grumman said in a statement. “This milestone stacking operation is a critical step to demonstrate that every process and requirement for safely assembling the complete Sentinel missile is executable on the test pad. It validates that the team is ready to move forward to a live flight test.”
The Northrop Grumman-built Sentinel is intended to replace the legacy Boeing-built Minuteman III ICBM, with the aim to field initial capability in the early 2030s.
“Sentinel is no longer conceptual or designs for what the nation’s next-generation ICBM looks like; it’s a physical, fully integrated system that is one major step closer to being ready for flight testing,” Air Force Gen. Dale White, the Pentagon’s director of critical major weapon systems, said in an Air Force statement. “While this [vertical stacking] is a significant achievement, we will keep driving, firmly focused on delivering a modernized, credible strategic deterrent that will safeguard the nation and its allies well into the future.”
Exchange Monitor affiliate Defense Daily first published a version of this story.