Air Force Reentry Programs

Supporting the Land-based Strategic Missile Force

Lockheed Martin Valley Forge Facility, King of Prussia, Penn.

On the cover:
Time-lapse photography captures a successful flight test of ICBM reentry vehicles by
the U.S. Air Force. ICBM test flights are regularly launched from an underground silo
at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., to a target location near Kwajalein Atoll in the
southern Pacific Ocean.

DigitalGlobe

A Proven Partnership,
Committed to Strategic Deterrence
In the final years of World War II, two inventions
appeared that would change war and peace forever:
ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons. In the Cold
War that followed, the race was on to combine
the two technologies to create a superior strategic
deterrent capability.

At that time, more than 50 years ago, the U.S. Air
Force chose Lockheed Martin to develop the nations
first intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). Since that
pioneering effort, this government-industry partnership
has continuously enhanced capabilitiesdeveloping
Atlas, Titan, Peacekeeper and Small ICBMs, and providing reentry systems for multiple ICBM generations
and ground command and control systems for the currently deployed Minuteman III.

Today the mission of strategic deterrence
continues. Lockheed Martin Space System Companys
Valley Forge facility in King of Prussia, Penn., is a key
member of the industry team delivering sustainment
support to ensure the Minuteman III operational force
is a safe, secure and credible deterrent through 2030.

A Legacy of Firsts
In partnership with the
U.S. Air Force, Lockheed
Martin designed, developed and produced several
innovations in land-based
strategic deterrence.
Atlas, the
first ICBM

Titan, the first silo-based/

hot, quick-launched ICBM

MK2, the first ICBM

reentry vehicle

MK12, first multiple

independently targeted
reentry vehicle (MIRV)
system

Small ICBM, the first

road-mobile ICBM

Peacekeeper, the first

cold-launched ICBM

Air Force Global

Strike Command
In 2009 the U.S. Air Force established a new organization, the Air
Force Global Strike Command.
Headquartered at Barksdale Air
Force Base, La., Air Force Global
Strike Commands mission is to
develop and provide safe, secure
and effective combat-ready forces
for nuclear deterrence and global
strike operations. This new command performs its mission with an
elite and highly disciplined team
of American airmen who have a
special trust and responsibility for
the most powerful weapons in our
nations arsenal.

Strategic Deterrence
and Nuclear
Integration Office
Created in 2008, the Air Staff
A10 Directorate, the Strategic
Deterrence and Nuclear
Integration Office,
reports directly to
the U.S. Air Force
Chief of Staff.
This directorate
provides increased
focus and oversight
of nuclear mission
issues at the headquarters
level and improves the flow of
information between the Air Force,
Department of Defense and other
mission partners.
2

Air Force Reentry Systems

Flight-tested Systems for United States
Land-based ICBMs
How do you keep objects falling
to Earth from burning up in the
atmosphere? This is the fundamental
challenge of reentry.

When the U.S. Air Force and
Lockheed Martin mastered the
science of reentry, they achieved
a breakthrough that, with further
refinement, enabled astronauts to
successfully return to Earth and
scientific spacecraft to pass through
the atmospheres of other planets.
50 years of Achievement. Our Air
Force Reentry Programs (AFRP)
unit has researched, designed, developed and produced nearly every U.S.
ICBM reentry vehicle ever fielded.
These include the MK2 and MK3
for the Atlas, MK6 for Titan, and the
MK12 and MK12A for the current
operational system, Minuteman III,
including design of the shroud, chaff
countermeasures system, deployment
module, reentry vehicle/aeroshell
and arming and fuzing systems.
Lockheed Martin also participated
in design and production of the
MK21 reentry vehicle for the
Peacekeeper missile.

To ensure the reliability and
viability of these systems, the
Air Force conducts a comprehensive program to inspect
and test missile and reentry
system components at the
depot at Hill Air Force Base
in Utah and in the missile
wings, and performs periodic
operational test flights from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

Other applications of the
organizations expertise have
included the first recovery vehicles
for the Corona photo reconnaissance satellites, threat-realistic target reentry vehicles, instrumented
and experimental reentry payloads,
maneuvering reentry vehicles and
penetration aids. For the U.S.
Navys Fleet Ballistic Missile
program, the AFRP team built the
MK5 reentry body for the Trident
II D5 missile and the experimental
MK500 maneuvering reentry body.
Proven Sustainment Capabilities. As
principal teammate to Northrop
Grumman, the current ICBM prime
integration contractor, Lockheed
Martin has been modernizing the
Minuteman III reentry system to
extend its operational service life. In
2002 the company began designing
and developing flight hardware and
ground support equipment for the

Lockheed Martins Air Force

Reentry Programs unit
has researched, designed,
developed and produced
nearly every U.S. ICBM
reentry vehicle.
Minuteman III Safety Enhanced
Reentry Vehicle (SERV) program.
As a result of SERV, Minuteman III
missiles are now capable of carrying
single MK21 reentry vehicles that
became available from the decommissioned Peacekeeper ICBM force.

Nuclear Weapons Center

A large portion of the Minuteman III missiles are slated to

be upgraded in this manner by
2011, improving the safety, surety
and longevity of the entire groundbased ICBM force.

Additionally, Lockheed Martin
has demonstrated its ability to refurbish the entire MK21 fuze assembly,
originally designed for only a 10-year
lifespan. Elements refurbished so far
include solid-state radars and launch
safety devices. These activities have
been recognized by the Air Force as
critical to U.S. ICBM sustainment.

All told, the company has the
experience and facilities necessary
to deliver optimal yet economical
ICBM sustainment support to
the U.S. Air Force.

The Air Force Materiel

Commands Nuclear
Weapons Center,
located at Kirtland
Air Force Base,
N.M., oversees
all U.S. air- and
land-based nuclear
weapon system maintenance and sustainment.
The centers goal is to ensure safe,
secure and reliable nuclear weapon
systems for the nation. Reporting to the center, the 526th ICBM
Systems Wing, located at Hill Air
Force Base, Utah, is responsible
for developing, acquiring and

supporting the U.S. groundbased ICBM force. To ensure

the readiness and reliability
of the U.S. arsenal of Minuteman III missiles, the 526th
performs systems engineering,
depot repair, equipment spares
management, storage and transportation, and modification or
replacement of all equipment
needed to maintain silo-based
ICBM systems. The 526th also
supports ongoing efforts to
develop a conventional prompt
global strike capability using a
hypersonic, unpowered payload
delivery vehicle.

Mastering the Science of Reentry

A Revolution in Strategic Deterrence
Before the latter half of the 20th
century, the only objects known to
survive atmospheric reentry were
meteorites. Starting in 1956, however,
General Electric Reentry Systems
(later acquired by Lockheed Martin),
then located in Philadelphia, Penn.,
teamed with the U.S. Air Force to
develop the worlds first reentry
vehicles.

Over the years this organization, now known as Lockheed Martin
Air Force Reentry Programs, has
been home to thousands of talented
engineers and technicians whose
combined ingenuity has achieved the
following firsts.
First Operational Heat Sink Reentry
Vehicle. The MK2 reentry vehicle
utilized a copper alloy heat shield,
absorbing and dissipating heat via
thermal contact. In 1959 Atlas missiles armed with MK2s became the
U.S.s first operational ICBM force.

GE Reentry Systems, Philadelphia, Penn.

spacecraft. The first successful recovery

occurred in August 1960, inaugurating
the era of the spy satellite.

First Multiple Independently Targeted

Reentry Vehicles (MIRV) System.
Lockheed Martin designed and built
the Minuteman III reentry system to
carry three reentry vehicles. The company also designed, built and tested
penetration aids for Minuteman III,
including chaff and decoys. The missiles payload is now being converted
to a single MK21 reentry vehicle from
the retired Peacekeeper force.

Largest Operational Reentry Vehicle.

The MK6 reentry vehicle for the Titan
II, an ablative, sphere-cone design,
weighed 8,000 pounds and was 14 feet
long. Deployed in 1962, the MK6
remained on active duty until the
mid-1980s.

MK12 reentry vehicles, the original armament of

the Minuteman III ICBM

MK2 reentry vehicle

First Operational Ablation Reentry

Vehicle. The MK3 reentry vehicle
used ablative materials, which dissipate heat by slowly burning away in
a controlled manner. In May 1960 an
Atlas MK3 established a new record
with a reentry flight of 9,000 miles.

First Return of a Man-Made Object

from Orbit. Lockheed Martin
designed the capsule and recovery
system for reconnaissance photographs taken by the Corona

MK6 reentry vehicle

First Reentry Vehicle Test with Complete Flight Control during Hypersonic
Reentry. Lockheed Martin and the Air
Force modified MK3 reentry vehicles
to investigate the use of aerodynamic
control surfaces and onboard guidance
and control subsystems. Three successful flight tests were conducted over the
Pacific in the mid-1960s, demonstrating
technologies useful for evading enemy
missile defense systems.

First Planetary Probe to Successfully

Enter Jupiters Atmosphere.
Lockheed Martin designed and built
the heat shield of the Galileo missions
atmospheric probe. The probe successfully entered Jupiters atmosphere on
December 7, 1995, withstanding an
impact at 106,000 miles per hour and
temperatures twice as hot as the suns
surface.

Behind all these firsts is a team
that has, over the years, produced
more than 3,000 reentry vehicles.
Today their experience lives on in the
continued sustainment of the Minuteman III ICBM force.

Launch Vehicles
Under the Payload
Lockheed Martins experience
with ICBMs extends beyond
reentry systems. The company
has delivered these launch
vehicles to the ICBM force:
Atlas D, E and F: The
first U.S. ICBM, on alert
19591965
Titan I: Two-stage liquidfueled, 19621965
Titan II: Non-cryogenic,
storable propellant
enables quick launch
from an underground
silo, 19641987
Peacekeeper: Three-stage
solid-fueled, 19862005
Small ICBM: Threestage solid-fueled,
19861992
In total, the company has built
more than 700 missiles.

A New Role for Conventional Weapons

Falcon Leads the Way
What is the next frontier for reentry science? The Defense
Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the
U.S. Air Force have partnered with Lockheed Martin
to develop technologies that will enable innovative conventional weapon systems having high
potential to support strategic deterrence.

In 2003 DARPA and the Air Force
initiated the Falcon program. Falcons
purpose is to demonstrate technologies that will enable prompt global
reach from U.S. soil using a vehicle
traveling at hypersonic speeds.

In Falcons initial phase, Lockheed Martin
has helped DARPA and the Air Force develop conceptual
designs and concepts of operation and identify critical technologies.
This ground-breaking effort requires solutions for new challenges in
navigation, guidance and control for precision accuracy and materials
for thermal protection systems.

Lockheed Martin has partnered with DARPA and the Air Force
to build two hypersonic technology vehicles (HTV) for launch from
Vandenberg Air Force Base toward Kwajalein Atoll using a Minotaur IV
Lite launch vehicle, which is based on the Peacekeeper missile. Although
unpowered, the vehicles are designed to reach speeds of between Mach
15 and 20 and soar in the atmosphere at altitudes between 150,000 and

200,000 feet, making them the fastest vehicles ever flown

from a ground takeoff.

In June 2009 the Air Force selected Lockheed Martin
to evolve the HTV concept into a Payload Delivery Vehicle
capable of carrying a conventional weapon. The success of
Falcon and its successors will give the nation unprecedented
capability to use a conventional weapon system as a strategic deterrent.

Such a vehicle makes a powerful contribution to
deterrence, enabling the U.S. to strike high-value targets
quicklysuch as an enemys long-range missile being
readied for launchanytime and anywhere on earth in
60 minutes or less. This new strike option would not require
a lengthy build-up of conventional forces, nor would it
involve overflight rights or host country basing issues.

Falcon and its successors will

give the nation
unprecedented capability
to use a conventional
weapon system as an element of
strategic deterrence.

The Price of Freedom

Since the height of the Cold War, nuclear arsenals have been reduced,
but the need for strategic deterrence remains. At Lockheed Martin we
are committed to the U.S. Air Forces ICBM mission, sustaining a force
that achieves the highest standards of safety, security and credibility.

Air Force Reentry Programs

230 Mall Blvd., Bldg. 100, M4413
King of Prussia, PA 19406-2902
610-354-4475
www.lockheedmartin.com

2010 Lockheed Martin Corporation

Photos courtesy of U.S. Air Force. No endorsement expressed or implied.
Approved for Public Release, Distribution Unlimited:
USAF 6 Apr 2010; DARPA 16 Jul 2010

K0946532

Lockheed Martin
Space Systems Company