One of two Trident II D5 missiles tested onJune 2. Photo: U.S. Navy U.S. Navy’s Lockheed Martin built submarine launched Trident II D...
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| One of two Trident II D5 missiles tested onJune 2. Photo: U.S. Navy |
U.S. Navy’s Lockheed Martin built submarine launched Trident II D5 ballistic missile have achieved 150 successful test flights.
Two unarmed Trident missiles were launched on June 2 from a submerged Ohio-class submarine in Atlantic Ocean marking the consecutive 149th and 150th successful test flights of the missile since design completion in 1989.
The test flights were part of a demonstration and shakedown operation, to certify a submarine for deployment following an overhaul. The missiles were converted into test configurations with kits containing range safety devices and flight telemetry instrumentation.
The operation included the first flight of two modernized avionics subsystems that control key missile functions during flight. The subsystems were updated under the D5 Life Extension program, which incorporates current technologies into the missile’s electronics to cost-effectively prolong the service life of the reliable D5 missile design on current and next-generation submarine platforms.
Equipped with multiple independently targetable re entry vehicles (MIRV), Trident missiles are carried by fourteen active US Navy Ohio-class submarines, and four Royal Navy Vanguard-class submarines.
First deployed in 1990, the D5 missile is currently aboard U.S. Navy Ohio-class and U.K. Royal Navy Vanguard-class submarines. The three-stage, solid-propellant, inertial-guided missile can travel a nominal range of 4,000 nautical miles.
