NATION : Trident Missile Launched in Test
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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The Navy secretly launched an unarmed Trident 2 missile from a submerged nuclear submarine today, pressing ahead with an accelerated test program to clear the way for operational deployment in March.
The 126,000-pound, three-stage missile, carrying a load of dummy warheads, was fired from the Tennessee while the Ohio-class submarine was cruising submerged about 50 miles east of Cape Canaveral.
Propelled to the ocean surface by a powerful charge of compressed gas, the solid-fuel missile was fired toward an undisclosed target in the south Atlantic or Indian oceans.
A media pool usually activated to cover such launches was not informed of the test ahead of time, and no other details were provided.
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