Three unarmed Trident II (D5) submarine-launched ballistic missiles were launched last week as part of a Follow-on Commander’s Evaluation Test (FCET), following two intercontinental ballistic missile launches last month and an air-launched cruise missile nuclear weapon system evaluation program test, the U.S. Strategic Command announced Monday.
“These six nominal launches, all within the past 30 days, represent all three legs of the Nuclear Triad and serve as indicators of our unbelievably capable force,” Deputy Secretary of Defense Bob Work said in a statement. The FCETs are intended to provide missile system reliability, accuracy, and performance data for the Strategic Command commander and Joint Chiefs of Staff, the announcement noted.
The Navy also conducted two Trident II (D5) missile flight tests last November, the announcement said, adding that these recent launches and tests demonstrate the missile’s readiness. “As the most survivable leg of the strategic deterrent triad, the Ohio-class SSBN and the Trident II (D5) missile provide the national command authority with an assured second-strike capability,” the announcement said.
Last week’s test flights featured for the first time a 3-D-printed missile component – a connector backshell meant to protect the missile’s cable connectors. Lockheed Martin, the company building the missiles, fabricated the component digitally and in half the time of traditional methods, the company announced Friday.
