U.S. Announces Missile Defense Test

The United States will test its missile defense (MD) system on August 31 (local time) against a target missile similar to North Korea’s intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) design.

Air Force Lt. Gen. Henry Obering, director of the Missile Defense Agency, said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times on August 26 that August 31 test would use a target missile similar in size and speed to a single-warhead weapon that the military believes North Korea could fire.

The newspaper reported that during the test, a target missile similar to those made by North Korea will be fired from Kodiak Island, Alaska, and an interceptor rocket topped with a "kill vehicle" will launch from California`s Vandenberg Air Force Base. However, a Boeing official said that in this test, the U.S. air force is not going to shoot down the target missile in the air and they will focus on making sure a redesigned kill vehicle is able to spot the target missile.

srkim@donga.com