The Air Force launched an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile from Vandenberg AFB, Calif., just after midnight Wednesday. The missile was launched as an operational test at 12:03 a.m. Pacific time, according to an Air Force Global Strike Command release. The launch was “an important demonstration of our nation’s nuclear deterrent capability,” Col. John Moss, 30th Space Wing commander, said in the release. The Air Force regularly picks a Minuteman III missile from its fleet and a crew from across AFGSC to conduct a test launch, with the last test held in February.
The crash of a T-38 trainer jet this May—which caused a weekslong pause in flights across the fleet—was caused by an improperly installed pin for one of the jet’s horizontal stabilizers, according to a new accident report released Oct. 30. When the pin disengaged midflight, it created the slightest amount…