Vandenberg activates interceptor missile Published Dec. 13, 2004 By Airman 1st Class Stephen Cadette 30th Space Wing Public Affairs VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AFPN) -- Missile defense is likened to hitting a bullet with a bullet. Using that analogy, the Air Force now has a round in the chamber.Officials from the 30th Space Wing here and the Missile Defense Agency positioned the first ground-based interceptor missile in an underground launch facility here Dec. 10, making it the first interceptor in the continental United States.The interceptor is part of the Department of Defense’s ballistic missile defense program, a system to defend the United States against missile attacks.Before the program, the United States was vulnerable to ballistic missile attack, said Army Maj. David Latham, the ground-based midcourse defense site manager here.“This will put an end to that exposure, and for the first time we will have a defense system in place that will protect the United States from ballistic missile threats,” Major Latham said.The interceptors work by launching a hit-to-kill payload; there is no warhead, said Dale Moore, deputy project manager in Huntsville, Ala. The interceptor places the payload in a path where it collides with an incoming ballistic missile.“When (the interceptor payload hits) any kind of (incoming) warhead, it imparts so much energy that it obliterates both,” Mr. Moore said.The collision of the interceptor and the target happens in space, so there is no explosion, agency officials said. The closing speed of the two vehicles is more than 16,000 mph.Ground-based interceptors are a part of a much larger system that will also include sea-based and air-launched interceptors. The system will be capable of defeating ballistic missiles of all ranges in all phases of flight, officials said.The emplacement here took several hours. Contractors moved the 50-foot interceptor from a trailer bed to a vertical launch system and installed additional safety and electronic equipment. Once attached to the launcher, the interceptor was lowered into an underground silo. Another interceptor is slated for installation by Dec. 31, Mr. Moore said. Six are already in place at Fort Greeley, Alaska. The two locations will provide protection for the entire nation. Placing eight interceptors this year is the first step toward a system that may eventually include more than 40 interceptors, Mr. Moore said.Once the program is in place, Strategic Command officials will be responsible for its operation.Airmen of the 30th Space Wing play a key support role for the system, said Lt. Col. Richard Gonzaludo, chief of the 30th Space Wing's site activation task force. It is a role Vandenberg is reviving from 1959 when the first Atlas D intercontinental ballistic missile went on alert here.“We respond to maintenance and infrastructure problems, provide day-to-day security, and monitor the operation here,” Colonel Gonzaludo said.Officials at the 14th Air Force headquarters here are also important in building the integrated “system of systems” needed for an interceptor to successfully engage a target. “Air Force Space Command (officials have) been focused on upgrading radars and satellites ... that are vital to implementing the ... ballistic shield over North America,” said Maj. Gen. Michael Hamel, 14th Air Force commander.Although Vandenberg is currently slated for two operational interceptors, two additional interceptors will be here for integrated flight tests, Mr. Moore said. “The testing is absolutely crucial to building our confidence,” he said. The interceptors will continue to be tested after the system is activated, Major Latham said.