Pictures Show US Minuteman III Nuclear-Capable Missile Hardware in Depot

Newsweek

a day ago

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Officially released photos show special weapons system mechanics conducting maintenance on nuclear-capable Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBMs) boosters.
This comes after U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command test-fired an unarmed Minuteman III missile from California on May 21. The missile traveled 4,200 miles across the Pacific Ocean to a test site in the Marshall Islands, demonstrating America's nuclear deterrent capability.
Why It Matters
The American ICBM force, consisting of 400 armed Minuteman III missiles deployed in silos and ready to execute nuclear strike missions, forms part of the country's nuclear triad, alongside ballistic missile-armed submarines and nuclear-armed bombers and fighter jets.
The Minuteman III fleet, which has been on alert since 1970, has an official stated range of "6,000-plus" miles. Each missile is equipped with a single nuclear warhead, according to the Federation of American Scientists, but is capable of carrying two or three if necessary.
The U.S. Air Force is replacing the decades-old Minuteman III missile system with the next-generation Sentinel ICBM on a one-for-one basis. The new system is expected to provide a "safe, secure, and effective" land-based leg of the nuclear triad through 2075.
What To Know
Hill Air Force Base in Utah released photos on Wednesday showing Minuteman III missile boosters undergoing maintenance at the base on Monday. The work was carried out by mechanics from the 582nd Missile Maintenance Squadron, according to photo captions.
Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile boosters undergo maintenance at Hill Air Force Base in Utah on June 2, 2025.
Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile boosters undergo maintenance at Hill Air Force Base in Utah on June 2, 2025.
R. Nial Bradshaw/U.S. Air Force
The base plays a central role in supporting the ICBM force by providing "programmed depot maintenance," one of the photo captions reads. The 582nd Missile Maintenance Squadron is responsible for maintenance, repair, overhaul, and modification of the Minuteman III fleet.
Programmed depot maintenance is defined as the "inspection and correction of defects that require skills, equipment, or facilities not normally possessed by operating locations."
Minuteman III missiles are deployed in silos across Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota and Wyoming. They are assigned to three operational units known as missile wings.
The Minuteman III missile features a three-stage booster design that propels it from its silo into space to release its nuclear warheads. Each booster stage separates and falls away sequentially after burning out, the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation explained.
The 582nd Missile Maintenance Squadron is also part of the 309th Missile Maintenance Group, a unit that provides storage for Minuteman III boosters and performs static firing and depot-level maintenance for the ICBM fleet, according to the website of Hill Air Force Base.
Mechanics perform maintenance on a Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile booster at Hill Air Force Base in Utah on June 2, 2025.
Mechanics perform maintenance on a Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile booster at Hill Air Force Base in Utah on June 2, 2025.
R. Nial Bradshaw/U.S. Air Force
What People Are Saying
The U.S. Air Force said in a fact sheet on the Minuteman III missile: "Missiles are dispersed in hardened silos to protect against attack and connected to an underground launch control center through a system of hardened cables. Launch crews, consisting of two officers, perform around-the-clock alert in the launch control center."
The Federation of American Scientists commented in its report on U.S. nuclear weapons on January 13: "Although the Minuteman III was initially deployed in 1970, it has been modernized several times, including in 2015, when the missiles completed a multibillion-dollar, decade-long modernization program to extend their service life until 2030."
What Happens Next
It remains to be seen when the U.S. will conduct its next test launch of the Minuteman III ICBM. In April, a simulated electronic launch was conducted at a base in Nebraska.