U.S. command aircraft ‘launches’ ballistic missile

The United States has conducted an operational test launch of an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile using an airborne command-and-control system, demonstrating a secondary method of issuing launch commands to the land-based nuclear force, according to the U.S. Air Force.

The test, designated Glory Trip 254, took place on 5 November 2025 and involved Airmen from the 625th Strategic Operations Squadron using the Airborne Launch Control System (ALCS) aboard a U.S. Navy E-6B Mercury aircraft. The missile was launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, with its reentry vehicle travelling approximately 4,200 miles to the Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site at Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands.

According to the U.S. Air Force, the launch was intended to assess the ongoing reliability, readiness and accuracy of the Minuteman III system, which remains a central element of the United States’ nuclear deterrent. Data collected during the flight will be used to identify potential issues and inform future sustainment of the force.

The ALCS provides an alternative means of transmitting launch orders should fixed launch control centres be unavailable. “The ALCS provides the nuclear forces a survivable and secondary capability to transmit launch commands to our ICBMs,” said Major Dalton Douglas, a missile combat crew member with the 625th STOS. “In the event launch control centres are unable to direct and execute our ICBM arsenal by presidential orders, the ALCS is the alternate means to control and employ those missiles by air.”

The 625th STOS is the only unit within the Department of the U.S. Air Force authorised to operate the ALCS. The squadron combines missile operators, engineers, maintainers, cyber specialists and contractors, and conducts regular training alongside periodic live launches. While an operational key-turn ALCS launch is performed annually, the unit also carries out twice-yearly simulated electronic launch Minuteman tests to rehearse procedures short of an actual launch.

“GT 254 is unique because it showcased every aspect of our mission as nuclear professionals from start to finish,” said Shane Bristow, a contractor supporting the squadron. He said the team carried out missile targeting, flight modelling, aircraft coordination and command transmission as part of the test.