Missile technology demonstration 3 (MTD-3) flight pretest predictions

The Missile Technology Demonstration (MTD) Program is a cooperative program between the Ballistic Missile Technology Office of the Air Force Research Laboratory and the Theater Targets Product Office of the Space and Missile Defense Command. Through the launch of a series of ballistic missile experiments, technology demonstrations to validate the use of the Global Positioning Systems (GPS) for range safety and precision guidance, automated self-destruct algorithms, high speed penetrators and smart fuses have and will be executed. These demonstrations ultimately support developing the capability for global strike against weapons of mass destruction and hard and deeply buried targets using conventional means of deterrence. This paper presents a brief background descriptions of the MTD-1 and MTD-2 flights as well as the expected performance of the upcoming MTD-3 flight.