Minuteman III missile test launch from Vandenberg

[soryang]

F.E. Warren AFB tests Minuteman III missile with launch from Vandenberg
Air Force Global Strike Command Public Affairs / Published May 01, 2019

https://www.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/1831488/fe-warren-afb-tests-minuteman-iii-missile-with-launch-from-vandenberg/

BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. (AFNS) --
A team of Air Force Global Strike Command Airmen from the 90th Missile Wing at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming, launched an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile equipped with a test reentry vehicle May 1 from Vandenberg AFB, California.

The test demonstrates that the United States’ nuclear deterrent is modern, robust, flexible, ready and appropriately tailored to deter 21st-century threats and reassure our allies. Test launches are not a response or reaction to world events or regional tensions.

The ICBM's reentry vehicle, which contained a high-fidelity package used for operational testing, traveled approximately 4,200 miles to the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. These test launches verify the accuracy and reliability of the ICBM weapon system, providing valuable data to ensure a continued safe, secure and effective nuclear deterrent.

[Laffy Kat]

1. Is this routine or sabre-rattling?

It's 3K miles from NK.

[soryang]

2. It's routine according to the USAF

Some conservative media sources in South Korea are trying to say it's sabre rattling and intended to make an impression on Kim Jong Un and Putin. Channel A News is part of the Dong A Ilbo media group, which is pretty conservative, is portraying this as a warning to Kim. Sometimes the Channel A broadcasts border on propaganda or psychological operations with respect to North Korea.

One USAF source said "these tests," are scheduled years in advance. I would have preferred it, if he said "this test," but I think it's evident that periodically they need to go through the testing and exercise process and it takes some time to get ready.

[Abnredleg]

3. It's routine

The AF has been pulling missiles out of silos and firing them from Vandenberg for decades. It’s part of their program to monitor reliability.