US anti-missile defense system failed ‘because sailor accidentally pressed the SELF-DESTRUCT button on the interceptor missile’
The test, on June 21, was the fourth for the new SM-3 Block IIA interceptor rocket
The SM-3, launched from a ship, detonated before it reached the target missile
A review has ruled out technological errors, and puts the blame on a sailor
They marked the target missile as ‘friendly,’ triggering trhe SM-3’s self-destruct
The ongoing investigation hasn’t yet explained why they made that error
The missiles are a US-Japan co-development in the face of North Korea’s threats
By JAMES WILKINSON
DAILYMAIL.COM
25 July 2017
A US anti-ballistic-missile defense test likely failed in June because a sailor pushed the wrong button, it has emerged.
The test, which took place on June 21, saw the new SM-3 Block IIA interceptor, guided by the Navy’s Aegis Combat System, detonating in the air before it was able to collide with the test missile.
Now it has been revealed that the mishap occurred not because of a computer malfunction, but most likely because a sailor on board the control ship pushed the interceptor’s self-destruct button, Defense News reported.
A review released by the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has ruled out malfunctions within both the SM-3 interceptor and the Aegis system.
That leaves human error as the likely explanation, Defense News reported.
The missile had been launched from US destroyer the John Paul Jones, and it was a tactical datalink controller on that ship who made the error, it said.
The sailor, who was in charge the flow of encrypted data between ships and aircraft, was given the option of marking the target missile as friendly or hostile.
Unfortunately for the test, the sailor pushed the ‘friendly’ button – which caused the interceptor to detonate before it could reach the target.
Exactly why that error occurred has yet to be explained by the MDA, which said the interceptor and Aegis had been ‘eliminated as the potential root cause’ but that an ‘extensive’ review is ongoing.
Air Force Lt. Gen. Sam Greaves, the director of MDA, said in a statement that ‘it would be inappropriate to comment further until we complete the investigation.’
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