 Its global strike command airmen conducted an operational test launch of an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile, February 9th, to demonstrate the readiness of the U.S. nuclear forces and provide confidence in the lethality and effectiveness of the nation's nuclear deterrent. Today's test launch used a randomly selected intercontinental ballistic missile pulled from Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota. The missile was transported more than 1,300 miles and reassembled at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. The ICBM was equipped with a single-test reentry vehicle and traveled approximately 4,200 miles at a speed of more than 15,000 miles per hour to a test range near the Quadalina Toll in the Marshall Islands. The ICBM test and evaluation program helps validate the reliability the nuclear umbrella our allies and partners rely on, eliminating the need to obtain their own nuclear weapons to counter potential adversaries. The 50-year-old Minuteman III is based in Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Wyoming and will be replaced by the LGM-35A Sentinel. Reporting from Vandenberg Space Force Base, I'm Air Force Staff Sergeant Drake Lehmann.