The 2026 National Defense Strategy, released in January, took a markedly different approach from the 2018 version produced by the President Donald Trump’s first administration. But don’t expect a similar overhaul in a new Nuclear Posture Review—the Pentagon has no plans to produce one.
Nuclear
The Air Force conducted its first test of a Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile in 2026 on March 3, launching an unarmed missile from Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif., equipped with two test reentry vehicles at 11:01 p.m. Pacific Time.
Senior U.S. military officials involved in restructuring the troubled LGM-35A Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program now project confidence that it will achieve operational capability in the early 2030s.
The Air Force will finish restructuring the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program by the end of this year, achieve its first test launch of the ICBM by 2027, and reach initial operational capability by the early 2030s.
Days before the New START Treaty is set to expire, experts, lawmakers, and former defense officials have varied perspectives on how President Donald Trump’s administration should proceed as it considers future arms control agreements with nuclear weapon states.
Northrop Grumman expects to strike a deal with the Air Force to accelerate B-21 bomber production by the end of March, CEO Kathy Warden said Jan. 27.
Congress moved one step closer to passing a defense budget and avoiding another government shutdown Jan. 22 as the House passed a mammoth appropriations package. The spending package includes cuts in funding for the B-21 Raider bomber and the LRSO missile.
More than a quarter-century after handing over the mission to the Navy, the Air Force is taking the first steps towards taking back over a critical nuclear command, control, and communications function.
Navy Adm. Richard Correll succeeded Air Force Gen. Anthony J. Cotton as head of U.S. Strategic Command on Dec. 5, stressing the need for the combatant command to understand and embrace new technologies for its deterrence mission.