Posted on 04/18/2022 10:29:50 AM PDT by re_tail20
The Air Force’s next-generation intercontinental ballistic missile has a new moniker.
Known by the clunky name of Ground Based Strategic Deterrent, or GBSD, the weapon system under development has officially been designated as Sentinel.
Land-based ICBMs have made up one part of the nation’s nuclear triad for decades.
“The name Sentinel recognizes the mindset that thousands of airmen, past and present, have brought to the deterrence mission, and will serve as a reminder for those who operate, secure and maintain this system in the future about the discipline and responsibility their duty entails,” Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said.
The Air Force determined the Sentinel would provide continuity in strategic deterrence and cost less than extending the life of the current ICBM fleet, comprised of the aging Minuteman III.
Replacing the 1970s-era missile modernizes the ground-based leg of the nuclear triad and brings the Minuteman’s more than 50 years of service to a close.
LGM-35A Sentinel missileClick to view larger An illustration of the LGM-35A Sentinel depicts the Air Force’s newest weapon system after launch. (U.S. Air Force illustration) Sentinel should be ready to start replacing the Minuteman weapons in 2029, according to projections.
Minuteman III missiles, which marked their 50th anniversary in 2020 and have 400 weapons sitting on alert, have already received some upgrades designed to extend their life until a replacement is ready.
Sentinel will incorporate low risk, technically mature components, and feature a modular architecture that can easily incorporate emerging technology to adapt as needed.
Additionally, it will be easier to maintain than the Minuteman system, officials said.
The new Sentinel fleet would be designed for operation into the 2070s.
“Sentinel is the next-generation, capable ICBM we need,” said Gen. Anthony Cotton, commander of Air Force Global Strike Command. “Nuclear deterrence is central to our defense...
(Excerpt) Read more at noozhawk.com ...
“Sentinel will incorporate low risk, technically mature components, and feature a modular architecture that can easily incorporate emerging technology to adapt as needed”
Jeez. Gobbledygook at its finest.
L 
“Sentinel will incorporate low risk, technically mature components, and feature a modular architecture that can easily incorporate emerging technology to adapt as needed”
He said "the missile will be made using stuff we already use, but that we can swap it out for other stuff in the future if needed."
My questions are:
How many of its components are manufactured overseas?
How are the important factors of climate & ecology taken into consideration?
Are the designers, engineers, production people, and managers carefully chosen to represent a diverse and caring society?
How much of the preliminary costs will be lost if the communists pull off another amazing theft in 2024 and 2028 and cancel the whole project?
They should have called it “Vishnu...destroyer of worlds”!
Okay.
Has it been tested?
Will and when will it fly?
Budget...type warhead, decoys...?
Nevermind.
5.56mm
As an actual retired EE I’m pretty sure that neither they nor anyone else know what “future modules” would be.
Isn’t Shiva supposed to be the destroyer, in the Hindu trinity?
You’re right.
"Sentinel Prime was a turncoat Autobot Commander and a double agent. He mentored Optimus Prime. He was always patriotic to a fault towards Cybertron, and was a strong willed and determined leader, who held a firm belief in the position of his race in the universe, and demanded respect from all around him, which he earned by proving himself a fierce and powerful warrior. Sentinel was charged with the safety of his secret weapon, the Pillars, which he believed could save their dying planet. Eventually, his hopes to revive Cybertron to its golden age glory changed him, and he ultimately betrayed the Autobots..."
But minuteman missiles can identify as sentinels.
Sure they do. Precision strike ballot bombs that can hit the slit of any drop box with cluster votes from 5 miles up and deployed on a moment's notice in the event that say, some populist is ahead in the count on Election Day.
I keep hoping the Feds put more time and effort into concocting competence with this system than they did with ther RECTRAC and Genesis screwups. It’ll look like a Wily E. Coyote/Roadrunner short.
wy69
It’s been referred to as ‘Sentinel’ in articles for as long as I’ve been reading them.
Actually that could work. “Our new missiles will hit you in the Buttigieg without fail”.
Shiva
The illustration looks like a slightly puffed up Minuteman II missile.
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