Missile Creates Spectacular Sight In Skies Over Central, South Coasts

Night owls saw a spectacular sight over the Central and South Coasts Wednesday, as a Minuteman III missile was successfully launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base
(USAF photo by Michael Peterson)

The Air Force successfully test launched an intercontinental ballistic missile from the Central Coast.

The Minuteman III missile took off from Vandenberg Air Force Base at 1:13 a.m. Wednesday.

It's the latest in a series of test launches from the base intended to test the readiness of launch crews, and equipment.  The unarmed missile flew more than 4,000 miles to a test range in the South Pacific.

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Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral.