The Missile Defense Agency is laying the technical groundwork for the Standard Missile-3 Block IIA -- a Navy interceptor originally designed to counter medium- and intermediate-range threats -- to also have an operational mission against intercontinental ballistic missiles, potentially stretching the reach of the new weapon to reinforce defense of the nation against North Korean threats. In addition, MDA is planning an intercept flight test in early 2020 of the SM-3 Block IIA against an ICBM, as part of a...
