The Pentagon's acquisition executive has cleared the Standard Missile-3 Block IIA program, in co-development since 2006 with Japan, for transition to production -- signaling confidence in the interceptor after early flight-test challenges and setting the stage for the rollout of a major operational enhancement to the Ballistic Missile Defense System. The decision allows the Missile Defense Agency to access more than $450 million in production orders Congress appropriated in the Fiscal Year 2018 Missile Defeat and Defense Enhancements Budget Amendment...
