Lawmakers Move to
Bulk Up Oversight of Sentinel ICBM, But Reject Attempts to Curb Program
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May 23, 2024 | By Greg Hadley
Lawmakers are taking several steps toward increased oversight of the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program after the Air Force announced earlier this year that it was suffering critical cost and schedule overruns—but there is little appetite to cancel or curb the program.
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Elsewhere in the NDAA, the committee wants to require the Pentagon to provide it with a briefing and documentation from its Nunn-McCurdy review within one month of the Defense Secretary’s final decision. As part of that briefing, lawmakers want a “description of the alternative systems and capabilities considered, including road-mobile intercontinental ballistic missile capabilities, life extending one or more wings of the Minuteman III and deploying a mixed fleet of Sentinel and life-extended Minuteman III ICBMs for a period of time.”
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“Do we have the structure and the people in charge that are necessary to make sure we can get beyond [the Nunn-McCurdy breach] and get that project moving forward?” King asked Air Force Global Strike Command boss Gen. Thomas A. Bussiere.
Bussiere cited the creation of a new ICBM modernization directorate, led by Brig. Gen. Colin J. Connor, but said further work determining the authorities Connor needs has been delayed by the Nunn-McCurdy review.
