Navy tests sea-based missile defense

Published: Nov 18, 2005
Source: www.cnn.com



HONOLULU, Hawaii (AP) -- The Navy intercepted and destroyed a warhead as it separated from its booster rocket during a test Thursday off Hawaii -- the first time a ship at sea has shot down a multi-stage missile.

The guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Erie fired an interceptor missile and knocked out the rocket's warhead about 100 miles (160 kilometers) above the Pacific, the Missile Defense Agency said in a statement.



The achievement is considered significant because medium- and long-range ballistic missiles typically have at least two stages. Intercepting such missiles after they separate is difficult because sensors must be able to distinguish between the body of the missile and the warhead.

All previous tests of the sea-based missile defense system involved short-range missiles that stay intact.continue..