Sentinel
U.S. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall says he is “concerned” about the schedule for the LGM-35A Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile system as there has been a schedule slip, though it remains within its overall baseline while there is not much more slack to give.
The Northrop Grumman Sentinel, previously known as the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent, will replace the Air Force’s Minuteman III ICBM system. Kendall said Nov. 1 at Aviation Week’s A&D Programs event in Washington that the internal slip comes as “we don’t have a lot of margin right now on the schedule.” The government, including under Kendall when he served as the Pentagon’s acquisition chief in the Obama administration, delayed nuclear modernization to the point where it is necessary now.
“I am concerned about the schedule, specifically for Sentinel,” Kendall said in a discussion on nuclear modernization.
The most recent selected acquisition report (SAR), released in September, says that Northrop Grumman has reported a “schedule variance to their baseline plan.” The SAR estimates the system Critical Design Review for May 2024, a slip from the current baseline objective of July 2023 but before the threshold of July 2024. The Milestone C decision is set for January 2026, ahead of the objective of May 2026, with Initial Operational Capability estimated for May 2029.
“As the year progressed, there has been significant progress made on linking the [Northrop Grumman] schedule to the Government Enterprise schedule and verifying several hundred giver/receiver linkages and Government Furnished Equipment delivery dates,” the SAR says.
The program faced a setback in test in July, when a Minotaur II+ rocket exploded shortly after launch at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. The rocket was the first launch test supporting the development of the Lockheed Martin Mk21A re-entry vehicle.
The SAR estimates the total budget cost in 2023 for the Sentinel program to be $95.8 billion, with a total end procurement quantity of 634.
Related Content
Comments
Just insane. Not the cost. The unaffordability of it. Which dooms the procurement. $151.1 million per missile. What about the Subs? What about the B-21?
Oh, and what about the war in Ukraine? Who's paying for that, China?