Inside Defense:
The Pentagon — citing a need to “safeguard critical defense information” — will no longer provide advance information about Ballistic Missile Defense System tests, a policy change that departs with a long-standing practice of routinely publishing both test schedules and test objectives.
The Missile Defense Agency’s fiscal year 2019 budget request notes that details about ballistic missile defense tests — previously included as part of budget justification material provided to Congress — are now only available in a classified document: the Integrated Master Test Plan. The agency, which according to congressional investigators requests more than $1 billion annually to conduct tests, confirmed the previously unreported policy change.
“Due to the need to safeguard critical defense information, the DOD will not provide timing or test details in advance beyond the required safety notifications for any planned flight tests,” Lt. Gen. Sam Greaves told Inside Defense in a Feb. 22 statement.
