M
issileers at Malmstrom AFB, Mont., have begun the deactivation process that will remove 50 Minuteman ICBMs from the arsenal of the 341st Space Wing. The wing received formal word last month to begin the process. Once the deactivation job is complete, with removal of the missiles and shut down five alert facilities in north central Montana, the wing will deactivate the 564th Missile Squadron. The wing will retain another 150 Minuteman missile systems—all the same type. Eliminating 50 ICBMs was part of the last Quadrennial Defense Review, which directed the Air Force to cut the force from 500 to 450 missiles.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
