BMD untested, says audit

SIKU CIRCUMPOLAR NEWS SERVICE

A U.S. congressional audit of the ballistic missile system says the system is largely unproven because of a lack of “realistic“ testing.

A report by the General Accounting Office says the eight flight intercepts attempted so far have been “repetitive and scripted” and that critical parts of the system haven’t been flight-tested.

The report comes as the U.S. is preparing to start lowering the first interceptor missiles into newly built silos at Fort Greely, Alaska and Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. A set of shorter-range interceptors will be deployed on Navy destroyers.

Some elements that were to be part of the initial deployment phase have been put off because of technical problems and production delays, the report notes.

The cost in 2004 and 2005 for developing and fielding the initial system rose by $1.12 billion to $7.36 billion U.S. over the past year, the report says.