Defense secretary continues Sentinel nuclear missile program despite soaring costs
![Defense secretary continues Sentinel nuclear missile program despite soaring costs](https://thehill.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/09/minuteman_icbm_AP.jpeg?w=900)
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's office on Monday certified the Sentinel nuclear missile program can continue after determining the effort is a major national security priority with no alternatives, despite its ballooning costs attracting increased scrutiny from Democrats on Capitol Hill.
The Office of the Secretary of Defense said it conducted a comprehensive and unbiased review of Sentinel after the program exceeded its cost projections by 37 percent in January, triggering a Nunn-McCurdy review that requires the Pentagon to consider whether to continue the program or axe it and to ensure it meets certain criteria to maintain funding.
The review found the program is vital to national security, has no alternative at a cheaper cost and is a higher priority than other programs that may be affected by continuing the funding for Sentinel. It also found the soaring costs to be reasonable and controllable if addressed.
But William LaPlante, the under secretary of Defense for acquisition and sustainment, rescinded the program's milestone B approval that allows it to enter the engineering and development phase, and he directed the Air Force to restructure Sentinel to understand the causes of the cost increases and to manage the effort more efficiently.
LaPlante said in a press release that his office is "fully aware of the costs" of Sentinel, which aims to replace the 400 Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) scattered across rural western parts of the country.
"But we are also aware of the risks of not modernizing our nuclear forces and not addressing the very real threats we confront," LaPlante said in the statement. "There are reasons for the cost growth, but there are no excuses. We are already working to address the root causes."
He added the Pentagon is "on the right path to defend our nation [while] protecting the sacred responsibility the American taxpayer has entrusted us with."
"The nuclear triad is the foundation of our national defense, and as our competitors modernize
their own nuclear forces, the urgency of pacing the threat is reflected in our Nuclear Posture
Review," LaPlante said.
The decision had been expected as the Air Force and other Pentagon officials had argued Sentinel should continue receiving funding. The fiscal 2025 budget request also includes funding for the program.
The Pentagon was slated to deliver its Nunn-McCurdy decision to Congress this week on the program. It comes just a little more than two weeks out from a July 24 hearing from Democrats on a congressional nuclear working group who has criticized the program.
A growing number of Democrats are expressing concerns about Sentinel, which is now projected to cost around $141 billion, up from $131 billion in January and around $60 billion when the program was getting off the ground around 2015.
A group of Democratic lawmakers sent a letter to Austin last month calling for an unbiased review of Sentinel and raising a number of concerns about the cost and effectiveness of the program.
Also on Monday, more than 700 scientists representing institutions across the country sent a letter to President Biden and Congress calling the U.S. to drop the Sentinel program from the budget. They argued it was "expensive, dangerous, and unnecessary."
Tara Drozdenko, director of the Global Security Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists, which organized the letter, said "there is no sound technical or strategic rationale for spending tens of billions of dollars building new nuclear weapons."
"These weapons — stored in silos across the Plains states — place a target on communities and increase the risk of nuclear war while offering no meaningful security benefits," Drozdenko said in a statement. "The U.S. could eliminate the land-based leg of the triad tomorrow and the U.S. public would only be safer for it."
Much of the cost increase for Sentinel is related to the real estate aspects of the program, since it involves not just creating brand-new missiles but also modernizing the infrastructure to support them.
The Pentagon said in the Monday press release that the review process determined the majority of the cost is in the command and launch segment, including the modernization of launch facilities and centers.
The restructuring of Sentinel will include addressing the command and launch segment, improving systems engineering and adjusting the contract structure and execution, according to Andrew Hunter, the assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, technology and logistics.
"We do not take lightly the once-in-a-generation responsibility to modernize the ground leg of the nuclear triad, and are mindful of the scope and scale of this undertaking, which is unprecedented in contemporary times," Hunter told reporters in a press call. "Over the coming months, we'll develop a comprehensive plan for how the Air Force will restructure the program."
The Air Force will scale back the size and complexity of the launch facilities as part of the restructure plan. Officials will bring a new program baseline, which could vary in projected costs as being higher or lower than current estimates, to the Pentagon after restructuring Sentinel.
Still, Sentinel is expected to take funding from other programs. Gen. James Slife, vice chief of staff for the Air Force, told reporters Monday that in the future they may have to "decide what trade-offs we're going to need to make in order to be able to continue to pursue the Sentinel program."
Critics have questioned whether ICBMs are necessary, pointing to them as sitting targets that lack the perks of the other legs of the triad — submarines are stealthy, and bomber planes are fast.
But supporters have argued the U.S. must maintain and modernize all three legs of its triad to keep up with nuclear threats from Russia and China. The Minuteman missiles that Sentinel aims to replace are more than 50 years old.
Gen. David Allvin, chief of staff of the Air Force, said the U.S. faces "an evolving and complex security environment marked by two major nuclear powers that are strategic competitors and potential adversaries."
"While I have confidence in our legacy systems today, it is imperative that we modernize our nuclear triad," he said in a statement shared in the Monday press release. "A restructured Sentinel program is essential to ensure we remain best postured to address future threats."
The costs are eating into the program's schedule. Defense contractor Northrop Grumman, which won an initial roughly $13 billion contract for Sentinel in 2020 and is expected to continue work on the program, has already delayed its initial flight test by two years until 2026.
The Air Force wants to field Sentinel by 2030 but is likely to have to life-extend the Minuteman missiles amid the delays, something it has previously said it could not do. The Pentagon review on Monday determined that there will likely be a delay of several years.
Date: |
-
The New York Times - Top stories
Defense Secretary Revokes Plea Deal for Accused Sept. 11 Plotters
Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III assumed direct oversight of the case and effectively put the death penalty back on the table.9 min ago -
CBS News - Top stories
Defense Secretary withdraws plea deal with 9/11 defendants
A plea deal reached this week with the alleged mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks, along with two of his alleged accomplices, has been retracted.1 hr ago -
NBC News - Politics
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin withdraws plea deal for accused 9/11 terrorists
WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Friday withdrew the plea deal for the three men accused of planning the 9/11 attacks.2 hr ago -
Financial Times - Business
St James’s Place shares jump by fifth as it sets out cost-cutting plans
Wealth manager beats expectations on profits and inflows and sets new growth targets3 days ago -
ABC News - Top stories
Israel continues strikes on humanitarian area in Gaza despite official designation
Israeli officials confirmed the strikes to ABC News, but maintained they were efforts to destroy Hamas militants and infrastructure within Palestinian neighborhoods.16 hr ago - Israel -
The Guardian - World
Celtic’s Scottish dominance set to continue despite upbeat Rangers vibes | Ewan Murray
Ibrox chief John Bennett says Rangers are ‘compelled to win’ but Brendan Rodgers’ side are superior on and off pitch. It took 15 minutes of a recent in-house interview for the Rangers chairman, John Bennett, to offer the kind of triumphalism ...16 hr ago -
ABC News - Tech
Intel announces it will cut more than 15% of its workforce as part of a broad cost-reduction program
Intel announces it will cut more than 15% of its workforce as part of a broad cost-reduction program6 hr ago -
Yahoo News - World
North Korean Anti-Tank Missile-Toting Vehicle Appears To Be Operating In Ukraine
3 days ago - Ukraine -
BBC News - Top stories
Culture secretary to discuss Edwards with BBC boss
Lisa Nandy and Tim Davie will speak over the phone and discuss the organisation's handling of the case.18 hr ago -
MarketWatch - Business
Tinder parent Match sees ‘transformation’ for the dating app, which has been losing users
Shares of Match Group rallied in the extended session Tuesday after the online-dating company said it sees a clear path for growth at Tinder, which has been losing users, and said it plans to cut about 6% of its workforce.3 days ago
More from The Hill
-
The Hill - Politics
Harris campaign hits JD Vance in fiery Happy Birthday message
Vice President Harris’s campaign hit Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), who former President Trump picked to be his running mate last month, with a fiery Happy Birthday message online. “At 78 and 40, Donald Trump and his sidekick, the most unpopular VP pick ...17 min ago -
The Hill - Politics
Aurora borealis could be seen in New York, Idaho
This year has been an exceptionally active one for geomagnetic storms and the aurora borealis.31 min ago - New York -
The Hill - Politics
George Conway slams Trump for avoiding debate with Harris: ‘Wuss’
Conservative pundit George Conway criticized former President Trump for seemingly refusing to debate Vice President Harris, calling him a “wuss.” Conway joined MSNBC’s “All in with Chris Hayes” Friday evening to discuss the future of the general ...59 min ago - Donald Trump -
The Hill - Politics
Pentagon rescinds plea deal for accused plotters of 9/11 attacks
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin revoked a plea deal Friday that would have taken the death penalty off the table for three prisoners accused of helping to plot the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Austin said in a news release that he believes ...1 hr ago -
The Hill - Politics
UAW chief: Trump has ‘never supported working class people’
United Auto Workers (UAW) Shawn Fain slammed former President Trump on Friday, saying he's beholden to billionaires and has “never supported working-class people.” In a recent interview with The Associated Press, Fain highlighted the union’s ...2 hr ago - Donald Trump