Washington. May 1. INTERFAX-The United States plans to conduct another test launch of the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile in early May to test the combat readiness of nuclear deterrence weapons, according to the international notice on the closure of the area for civil aviation flights over the Pacific Ocean (NOTAM).
According to the notice, the launch of the Minuteman III ICBM is planned to be carried out in the period from May 5 to May 6 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California at the test site on Kwajalein atoll (Marshall Islands, Central Pacific). The range of the rocket will be 7.77 thousand km.
The last launch of the Minuteman III ICBM with an unarmed warhead was carried out on February 23 of this year.
The missile, having flown 6.76 thousand km, hit the target at the test site in the area of Kwajalein atoll.
On average, four such launches of American ICBMs are conducted annually.
Minuteman III with a range of 12 thousand km is the only mine-based ICBM in the US strategic nuclear forces.
