Air Force Global Strike Command recently stood up a new directorate, AFGSC/A10, the Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Modernization Directorate, at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana.

The new directorate is responsible for overseeing and coordinating the activities of the Air Force for the deployment of the new LGM-35A Sentinel weapon system and the retirement of the LGM-30G Minuteman III weapon system.

Congress directed the establishment of the directorate in the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act.

Brig. Gen. Colin Connor was named director of the new organization in August 2023 and will lead the new directorate, which includes a Sentinel operating location team, Sentinel requirements division and Sentinel operations division.

“The Sentinel project is a monumental one for the United States,” Connor said in an Air Force release. “It aims to field 400 missiles, modernize 450 silos and more than 600 facilities across almost 40,000 square miles of U.S. territory over six states, three operational wings and a test location, to replace the Minuteman III ICBM weapon system. I am honored to be part of the team that shapes the ICBM enterprise for the future nuclear community.”

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The transition from Minuteman to Sentinel is taking place in Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, California, Colorado and Nebraska over the next 20 years.

All components of the previous weapon system will be replaced, including the motors, interstages, propulsion system rocket engine, and missile guidance set. The number, size, configuration and design of the nuclear warheads provided by the Department of Energy will remain unchanged, according to AFGSC.

In October, the Air Force awarded a $996,215,214 contract to Lockheed Martin for the engineering, manufacturing and design to provide a low technical risk and affordable reentry vehicle for the Sentinel missile.

Sentinel is the ground based strategic deterrent that will replace the existing Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile system.

The contract is part of the MK21A RV program for the Air Force through a sole source acquisition.

The work is expected to be completed by Oct. 20, 2039.

Construction on Sentinel project set to begin

Research, development, test and evaluation funds from the fiscal year 2024 budget totaling $26,612,031 were obligated at the time of the contract award, according to the Air Force.

The Air Force awarded a $108 million contract to Lockheed Martin for the technology maturation and risk reduction portion of the project in 2019.

Lockheed Martin worked with the Air Force and the National Nuclear Security Administration to develop the RVs with the capability to deliver the W87-1 warhead that will be on the Sentinel missiles, according to the company.

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The Sentinel Program Integration office at Malmstrom Air Force base said that there will be two locations for the project in Montana. One of those will be in Great Falls, the other in Lewistown.

Both will be about 50-60 acres of land that has not yet been purchased or leased, with about 2,500 to 3,000 personnel, with their own dining facility, gym, recreation center and be completely contained within a fenced area. Northrop Grumman, the contractor, will provide security, patrol the area and control access, according to Malmstrom.

Sentinel program staff has spoken with the fire and police chiefs in Great Falls and Lewistown, as well as area tribes, about the locations.

Sentinel missile system completes another test

According to the Sentinel office, field work on the weapon system replacement won’t start until 2030 at the earliest.

The Air Force signed off on the environmental record of decision in May 2023 for Sentinel, the ground based strategic deterrent that will replace the Minuteman III missile system currently in use.

That means the construction phase of the multi-billion-dollar missile system can begin, according to the Air Force.

The signed decision meant officials could move forward with permitting and construction for the project at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Wyoming.

Project activities at Malmstrom are expected to begin in 2026 and at Minot in North Dakota in 2029.

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The Air Force determined that replacing the current ICBM system would be cheaper than extending the life of the Minuteman III system and the new system is expected to last through 2075, according to the Air Force.

Malmstrom maintains 150 ICBM silos across its 13,800-square-mile complex in central Montana. The Air Force also operates silos at the F.E. Warren and Minot. According to the Department of Defense, there are 450 silos in the U.S. with 400 missiles deployed at any time.

In September 2020, the Air Force awarded a $13.3 billion engineering and manufacturing development contract to Northrop Grumman for GBSD.

The project includes modernizing and replacing all launch facilities, communication systems, infrastructure, and technologies as necessary to support the GBSD system, according to the Air Force.