Ready or not, it's go for launch
To many doubters, it comes down to dollars. A complete missile defense system could cost hundreds of billions of dollars in the next 25 years. The administration is asking for an additional $10.2 billion just for next year--"As far as I know . . . the largest single-year funding request for any weapon system in history," according to Sen. Carl Levin, a Michigan Democrat. The retired generals and admirals who wrote to Bush declared they'd rather see some of that money spent protecting "ports and borders against terrorists who may attempt to smuggle weapons of mass destruction into the United States."
But at Fort Greely, on the 700-acre, graveled missile field, the white clamshell tops of the interceptors' silos are already in place, cordoned off by two parallel high-tech, barbed fences. Soon, 110 soldiers and military police will take up stations here, joining the hundreds of engineers, construction workers, and contractors who will add silos and infrastructure over the next few years.
Edward Richards, who owns the Buffalo Center Diner in Delta Junction, smiles at the thought. Thanks to missile defense, he's gone from probable bankruptcy to brisk business. Yet he, like some other residents, questions whether the threat justifies the huge expense. "It's great for the town," he shrugs. "But I'm not sure it's logical."
MISSING PIECES IN MISSILE DEFENSE
An initial system to knock out crude missiles in midflight should go on alert by September 30--but may not be ready to meet a real threat. A later system may include boost-phase and terminal defenses.
[Drawing labels]
EARLY-WARNING SATELLITES can detect a missile launch, but sensors designed to enhance the system won't be delivered before July.
DECOYS released along with the warhead might fool an interceptor. So far, the system has not been tested with complex decoys--or, critics say, realistic ones.
KILL VEHICLE would home in on the warhead and destroy it. It has scored five intercepts in eight tests, but critics call the tests unrealistic.
COBRA DANE radar, built during the Cold War, has been upgraded to track a hostile missile and guide an interceptor.
AEGIS radar, based on ships, would assist in tracking a missile.
SEA-BASED X-BAND would give detailed guidance to the kill vehicle. It won't be ready before the end of 2005.
FORT GREELY, ALASKA, will be the site of six interceptors by this fall and will process targeting information.
U.S. NORTHERN COMMAND at Cheyenne Mountain, Colo., would be alerted to any hostile launch and decide whether to respond.
THREE-STAGE BOOSTER for the interceptor rockets has not been delivered or tested.
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE in California will host four interceptors.
Early-Warning Satellite Missing or not fully tested
WARHEAD
DECOYS
BOOST Phase
Kill vehicle Missing or not fully tested
MIDCOURSE
Aegis radar In Place
TERMINAL Phase
Targeting Information
Hostile missile
COBRA DANE (on Shemya Island) In Place
Fort Greely Alaska interceptors In Place
X-Band Radar Missing or not fully tested
Three-stage interceptor Missing or not fully tested
U.S. Northern Command In Place
Vandenberg Air Force Base In Place
Source: Missile Defense Agency
Stephen Rountree--USN&WR
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