Vice Adm. James Syring, director of the Missile Defense Agency, has said MDA aims to build advanced technology against ballistic missile threats from nations such as North Korea and Iran, DoD News reported Thursday.
Cheryl Pellerin writes Syring mentioned the agency’s technology research and development programs when he testified on its $7.5 billion fiscal 2017 budget proposal before the Senate Armed Services Committee’s strategic forces subcommittee Wednesday.
“The programs we have in development today and will be fielding between now and 2020 are adequately funded,” he told subcommittee members.
At the meeting, he noted Congress has provided funds for the development of a new kill vehicle, a ground-based midcourse defense and a long-range discrimination radar over the past three fiscal years, Pellerin reports.
He added the agency plans to add capabilities to its Aegis ballistic missile defense system, field more Standard Missile-3 Block 1B guided missiles and explore directed-energy technologies.
