Pentagon testfires Minuteman 3 ICBM

A team of Air Force Global Strike Command Airmen launched an unarmed Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missile equipped with a test reentry vehicle at 12:27 a.m. Pacific Time Oct. 29 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, according to an Air Force media release.

Officials stressed the test, planned well in advance, was not a reaction to current events, AirForceTimes reports.

“The launch calendars are built three to five years in advance, and planning for each individual launch begins six months to a year prior to launch,” according to the release. “Test launches are not a response or reaction to world events or regional tensions.”

The test was the latest in a string of tests of the ICBM and demonstrates that the U.S. nuclear deterrent is “safe, secure, reliable and effective” means to deter modern threats and reassure allies, Air Force officials said.

“Like previous test launches, this event demonstrated the Air Force’s commitment to the Nation’s nuclear enterprise while ensuring the United States' nuclear deterrent is safe, secure, and effective to deter our adversaries while reassuring our allies and partners,” said Air Force Chief of Staff, General Charles Q. Brown, Jr., said in a statement. “We must continue to invest in this viable deterrent, and the Airmen who support this mission, as part of the most responsive leg of our nuclear triad.”