Washington [US], March 29: The first test flight of the Sentinel nuclear missile will be postponed until 2026, two years later than the planned program to develop America's next generation intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
The Hill newspaper on March 28 cited US Air Force documents for the 2025 fiscal budget showing that the Sentinel missile is expected to have its first test flight in February 2026, while the original plan was to fly. try this year.
The above development is the latest sign that America's highly anticipated ICBM program is having problems, mainly because costs have skyrocketed compared to previous estimates.
According to the US Air Force, the delay comes from the development of the missile's guidance computer components.
Northrop Grumman, the contractor responsible for developing the Sentinel missile with an initial $13 billion contract, has performed some preliminary testing of the missile's components. These tests were successful.
The US Next Generation ICBM program is facing criticism for overshooting its initial budget by 37% as of January. That triggers the Nunn-McCurdy Overreach Act mechanism , which means Now the defense minister must intervene to review the project.
According to new calculations, the program now needs about 131 billion USD to complete, and has been delayed for at least 2 years, instead of 2030 as expected.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
