Lawmakers want the Defense Department to accelerate flight testing of the Ground-based Midcourse Defense program, adding $24 million to the Missile Defense Agency's budget to move up the date for a planned milestone evaluation -- the first salvo launch of Ground-based Interceptors against an intercontinental ballistic missile. The Fiscal Year 2017 Consolidated Appropriations Act adds funds across four different missile defense programs with only this explanation for their use: "Program increase -- FTG-11 test acceleration." Officially, that event -- Flight...
