Lockheed Martin has received a $108.3 million contract from the U.S. Air Force for research on the Mk21A Reentry Vehicle for use with a redesigned nuclear warhead.

The deal, announced Wednesday by the Department of Defense, calls for risk reduction and technology maturation studies to offer a low-cost, low technical risk re-entry vehicle capable of delivering the W87-1 nuclear warhead using the Air Force's Ground Based Strategic Deterrent Weapon System.

The re-entry vehicle components include a high velocity nose tip, high impulse transducer, fuse, electronic devices, and various shells and other external bodywork.

The W-78 series is one of the oldest nuclear warheads in the U.S. nuclear arsenal, dating to 1979. A modification program, W87-1, began with feasibility studies in January 2019.

While the new version is similar to the W87, which can carry up to 10 nuclear warheads and was first deployed in 1986 on the MX/Peacekeeper, the W87-1 is designed as a follow-on to the W-78.

The new version is "based on a previously-tested nuclear component and will include an insensitive high explosive primary that had been designed and tested with advanced safety features," the Department of Energy and National Nuclear Security Administration said in March.

"The W87-1 will not provide new military capabilities, yet it will provide enhanced safety and security compared to the legacy W78," officials said at the time, adding that it "will be certified without the need for additional underground nuclear explosive testing."

The new contract includes development of applicable support equipment, data, flight test hardware, and infrastructure and training materials. It will include examination and mitigation of weapon system integration risks, as well as nuclear surety and certification, and system vulnerability assessments.

The work is expected to be completed by October 2022.

Related Links
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com
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All about missiles at SpaceWar.com
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com

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US successfully tests ICBM: statement
Los Angeles (AFP) Oct 2, 2019
The US military said Wednesday it had tested an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile equipped with reentry vehicle from a base in California across the Pacific Ocean. Launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base at 1:13 am local time (0813 GMT) the reentry vehicle traveled approximately 4,200 miles (6,750km) across the Pacific Ocean to the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands, the Air Force Global Strike Command said in a statement. "The test demonstrates that the United State ... read more