Bloomberg reports that in August 2020, U.S. officials approved the Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) Sentinel program with an initial budget of $96 billion.
The program, overseen by contractor Northrop Grumman Corp, aims to produce 659 Sentinel missiles to replace the Minuteman III missiles developed in the 1970s. This ambitious project is part of the modernization process for all three branches of the U.S. nuclear arsenal—air, land, and sea—to maintain superiority over China.
Despite strong support from the U.S. Congress, the new Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile project has incurred excessive costs after more than three years of implementation.
Illustration of the U.S. Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile. (Image: Bloomberg).
It is estimated that each ICBM and associated costs, such as building silos, could exceed the current estimate of $118 million by more than 50%. Therefore, in theory, the production of 659 Sentinel missiles could escalate costs to nearly $117 billion.
This could lead the project to violate the Nunn-McCurdy Act. This law, named after former Senator Sam Nunn and former Representative David McCurdy, was enacted in 1982.
The Nunn-McCurdy Act requires the Pentagon to notify the U.S. Congress and explain any project that exceeds its initial budget by 15%, 25%, or up to 50%. In such cases, to continue the project, the Pentagon may have to request additional funding.
By activating the Nunn-McCurdy Act, the U.S. Congress would need to assess and decide whether to continue the development of the new ICBM program.
The U.S. Air Force is currently conducting an assessment and needs about 45 more days to conclude whether the Sentinel program’s costs exceed the legally mandated thresholds.
“If the Nunn-McCurdy Act is triggered, the development program for the new Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile will face the risk of cancellation” – Bloomberg noted.
