[Launch Alert] Minuteman III Launch

[Brian Webb]

                             LAUNCH ALERT
 				  
					Brian Webb
			   Ventura County, California
				 kd6nrp at earthlink.net
			   http://www.spacearchive.info
		      
						    2008 May 19 (Monday)
17:46 PDT
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				MINUTEMAN III LAUNCH
			  Vandenberg AFB Media Advisory
				     2008 May 19

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. - A Minuteman III intercontinental
ballistic missile configured with a National Nuclear Security
Administration (NNSA) joint test assembly (JTA) is scheduled to launch
from North Vandenberg Thursday morning as an operational test to
determine the weapon system's reliability and accuracy.  The six-hour
launch window is from 3:01 a.m. to 9:01 a.m.

The missile will launch under the direction of the 576th Flight Test
Squadron.

Col. Steve M. Tanous, 30th Space Wing commander, is the spacelift
commander for this mission. Lt. Col. Lesa K. Toler, 576th FLTS
commander, is the mission director.

Members of the 576th FLTS installed tracking, telemetry and command
destruct systems on the missile to collect data and meet safety
requirements.

The missile's single unarmed re-entry vehicle is expected to travel
approximately 5,250 miles, hitting a pre-determined target in the
ocean 230nm south of Guam.

The entire ICBM community, including the Department of Defense and the
Department of Energy, will use the data collected from this mission.

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