ARLINGTON, Va. (AFNS) -- In direct response to the 2026 National Defense Strategy’s call for urgency and speed, the U.S. Air Force rolled out its plan for the LGM-35A Sentinel program, which will deliver the nation’s next-generation, modernized, land-based nuclear deterrent to America’s warfighters. Leveraging considerable progress over the last 12-18 months, program officials are executing a transformed acquisition strategy paving the way to complete the restructure and achieve a Milestone B decision by the end of 2026, while delivering an initial capability targeted for the early 2030s.
To accelerate critical modernization efforts, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth established the Department of War Direct Reporting Portfolio Manager (DRPM) for Critical Major Weapon Systems (CMWS) in August of last year. Reporting to the Deputy Secretary of War, the DRPM role places program like Sentinel, MMIII, F-47, B-21 and other major Air Force weapon system programs under a single empowered leader. The DRPM is explicitly designed to cut through bureaucracy and reduce decision latency across requirements, acquisition, infrastructure, and operational transition — ensuring the rapid delivery of capability at speed and scale.
“The DRPM has the direct authority to make decisions, informed by integrated inputs across the enterprise and in alignment with the mission priorities set by the Secretary of War and the Secretary for the Air Force,” said Gen. Dale White, director, Critical Major Weapon Systems. “That construct allows us to resolve tradeoffs quickly and move with the speed required to deliver credible deterrence — while preserving the discipline this mission demands.”
Under the newly established DRPM structure, U.S. Strategic Command remains the combatant command responsible for deterring strategic attack, Air Force Global Strike Command leads operational transition and readiness, and the Department of the Air Force executes acquisition and infrastructure delivery — all now synchronized through a single, accountable decision authority. This alignment enables faster resolution of cross-cutting issues that historically required sequential coordination across multiple organizations.
Following a detailed review upon taking the position, White worked closely with the Sentinel team and determined the program is on track to complete the program restructure phase this calendar year. This comprehensive assessment, conducted in close collaboration with the program’s requirements and readiness stakeholders to ensure critical capability is fielded as expeditiously as possible, also solidified the early 2030s as the firm target for delivering initial capability.
Maintaining momentum and proving the technology
Sentinel is a comprehensive, once-in-a-generation modernization of the entire land-based leg of the nuclear triad, a key component of the nation’s integrated deterrence posture. It is a full-scale replacement of the missile, launch systems and command-and-control infrastructure with a new architecture designed with built-in adaptability for the digital era.
Throughout the restructuring process, the Air Force and its industry partners kept executing critical technical work on the system’s air vehicle, command-and-launch systems, wing command centers and supporting infrastructure. These sustained efforts produced measurable progress over the past year, pulling technical risk left and informing future integration activities.
• Last fall, the program assembled Sentinel’s first complete three-stage ground test missile, a digital model brought to life, which will be used for transportation and emplacement pathfinder activities to prepare for the first flight.
• The Air Force and Northrop Grumman successfully completed a full-scale qualification test of Sentinel’s Stage-2 solid rocket motor in July 2025, which built on the successful Stage-1 qualification in March 2025 and a developmental test of the Stage-2 motor in January 2024.
• In September, the program completed the critical design review for the Sentinel Launch Support System, which will support all test and operational launches throughout the system’s life.
Together, these achievements provide tangible evidence of technical maturity and underpin confidence in advancing program decision timelines, enabling the shift from development to preparing the warfighter for the operational mission.
"The Sentinel team did the hard work to demonstrate readiness to advance key decisions, and they brought forward the data to support it," said White. “The restructured Sentinel program is the product of a deliberate, data-driven process and embodies our commitment to transforming acquisition.”
Preparing the warfighter for a seamless transition
While technology maturation continues, the Air Force is actively preparing missile wings for the operational transition to Sentinel. That preparation reached a visible milestone last fall when AFGSC took the first Minuteman III silo offline — a carefully sequenced step in planning and executing the transition from Minuteman III to Sentinel.
This effort is managed by Site Activation Task Force (SATAF) detachments established at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming; Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana; Minot AFB, North Dakota, and Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. These teams of experts are on the ground, integrating with local units to meticulously plan the deactivation of old sites, construction and fielding activities in a deliberate, phased manner.
"Our Global Strike Airmen operate the land-based ICBM force foundational to our nation’s defense, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year,” said Gen. S.L. Davis, commander, Air Force Global Strike Command. “The activation of these SATAF detachments and turnover of the first Minuteman III silo is a clear signal: we are making real, tangible progress in accelerating the Sentinel program and fielding significantly improved long-range strike capabilities.”
A smarter, more efficient path to fielding
The restructured program incorporates key lessons learned to ensure maximum efficiency. The decision to build new silos, for example, avoids the unpredictable costs and safety hazards of excavating and retrofitting 450 unique structures built over 50 years ago, and is a prime example of choosing a path that delivers capability with greater speed and less risk.
The program is also adopting an agile acquisition methodology, using a deliberate "crawl, walk, run" approach to its flight-testing campaign. This incremental strategy allows for earlier testing of key components, validating technologies sooner and ensuring a more reliable path to full system integration.
The Sentinel program remains one of the most complex modernization efforts in Air Force history. By executing this deliberate, data-driven strategy, the Air Force is committed to delivering on its promise: a safe, secure, reliable and credible deterrent that will provide a bedrock of stability for the nation and its allies for decades to come.
"The Sentinel program is moving forward with purpose and momentum," said White. "We have the right strategy, we are proving the technology, and we will deliver on our promise to provide our Airmen with the modern, credible system they need to deliver the unwavering deterrence our nation requires."
Looking ahead: from digital design to concrete reality
This program momentum will become even more visible in the coming year as digital designs are translated into concrete and steel.
• This month (February), teams will break ground on a prototype launch silo at Northrop Grumman’s Promontory, Utah, site. This crucial effort will allow engineers to test and refine modern construction techniques, validating the new silo design before work begins in the missile fields.
• This summer, prototyping activities at F.E. Warren AFB will validate innovative utility corridor construction methods, which are key to streamlining the installation of thousands of miles of secure infrastructure and fielding the system faster.
• Meanwhile, foundational construction on permanent facilities is already well underway. The first of three new Wing Command Centers is taking shape at F.E. Warren AFB, and critical test facilities are being erected at Vandenberg SFB to support the future flight test campaign.
This methodical progress paves the way for the program’s next major operational milestone: the first missile pad launch, planned for 2027.
“A modern, reliable ICBM force complicates an adversary’s decision-making and provides the President with credible options — the very cornerstone of strategic deterrence,” stated U.S. Navy Adm. Richard Correll, commander, U.S. Strategic Command. “The deliberate progress being made on Sentinel ensures, that for decades to come, there will be no doubt in the minds of our adversaries about the credibility and readiness of our nation's nuclear deterrent. That is the ultimate deliverable."