A U.S. Navy Ohio class ballistic missile submarine from Submarine Group 10, which has not been named, launched three Trident II D5 missiles completing a Follow-on Commander’s Evaluation Test (FCET).
This test (FCET) is undertaken to obtain, under operationally representative conditions, valid reliability, accuracy, and performance of the missile system for use by Commander, Strategic Command and the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The last one was designated FCET-52 and spanned a three-day period. The operation marked the 158th, 159th, and 160th successful test flights of the Trident II D5 missile.
The U.S. Navy said the safety of the public was of highest importance throughout the mission. Missiles were therefore unarmed and all launches were conducted from the sea and landed in the sea.
The Trident II D5 is the latest generation of the U.S. Navy’s submarine-launched fleet ballistic missiles, following the highly successful Polaris, Poseidon, and Trident I C4 programs, as Lockheed Martin, the American defence company that produces the missiles, explains.
First deployed in 1990, the Trident II D5 missile is currently aboard Ohio-class and British Vanguard-class submarines.