Editing Vandenberg Space Force Base (section)

====== Ground-Based Midcourse Defense Interceptor ======
[[File:MDA interceptor on launch pad ift107.jpg|thumb|[[Ground-Based Midcourse Defense|Ground-based Midcourse Defense]] (GMD) interceptor in launch silo at Vandenberg|248x248px]]The latest missile deployed at Vandenberg in 2005 is the [[Ground-Based Midcourse Defense|Ground-based Interceptor]] (GBI) missile suborbital booster for the U.S. [[Missile Defense Agency]]'s Ground-based Midcourse Defense system's [[Exoatmospheric Kill Vehicle|EKV]] ballistic missile kill vehicle. It is part of a [[National missile defense]] system advocated by President [[George W. Bush]]. The OBV is under development by [[Orbital Sciences Corporation|Orbital Sciences]]; for every interceptor missile there is a missile silo and a Silo Interface Vault (SIV), which is an underground electronics room adjacent to the silo.<ref name="vafbhistory"/> The basic OBV consists of the upper three stages and guidance system from the [[Minotaur-C|Taurus]] orbital launch vehicle (essentially a wingless [[Northrop Grumman Pegasus|Pegasus-XL]]). The developmental OBV is launched from an open pad; the operational version is to be silo-launched.<ref name="OBV">{{cite web|url=http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/obv.htm|title=OBV|publisher=Astronautix|date=15 December 2010|access-date=31 March 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130522163218/http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/obv.htm|archive-date=22 May 2013}}</ref>

The first test firing of the OVB took place from former Atlas-F pad 576-E on 6 February 2003. Launch silo LF-23 is used for ongoing silo testing, with target missiles consisting of surplus inert Minuteman ICBM second and third stages being launched from the [[Kwajalein Atoll|Kwajalein Meck launch site]] in the [[Pacific Missile Range Facility|Pacific Range]].<ref name="OBV"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.astronautix.com/sites/kwanmeck.htm|title=Kwajalein Meck launch site|publisher=Astronautix.com |access-date=31 March 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130522221434/http://www.astronautix.com/sites/kwanmeck.htm |archive-date=22 May 2013 }}</ref>