OPINION — “The Golden Dome for America technique [President Trump’s proposed nationwide anti-missile defense system] stays centered on inexpensive and scalable capabilities. Within the short-term, we’ll leverage battle-proven applied sciences and programs to supply speedy protection in opposition to present threats. By bettering, multiplying, and integrating current programs, we will subject a reputable protection now. Nevertheless, defeating an growing variety of subtle, lower-cost offensive threats with a restricted provide of multi-million-dollar [space- and ground-based] interceptors is an economically untenable proposition in the long run.”
That was from the ready assertion of Area Command Basic Michael Guetlein, Program Supervisor for the Golden Dome for America undertaking, who appeared final Wednesday earlier than a Home Armed Providers Strategic Subcommittee listening to held to supply an replace on Golden Dome and different Division of Protection (DoD) missile protection applications together with different senior officers.
In saying the Golden Dome program on January 27, 2025, Trump, in an Govt Order stated, “The United States will present for the frequent protection of its residents and the Nation by deploying and sustaining a next-generation missile protection defend; the US will deter — and defend its residents and significant infrastructure in opposition to — any international aerial assault on the Homeland; and the US will assure its safe second-strike functionality.”
Final Could, Trump predicted, “As soon as absolutely constructed, the Golden Dome shall be able to intercepting missiles even when they’re launched from different sides of the world, and even when they’re launched from area, and we could have the very best system ever constructed.”
Guetlein, simply earlier than the two-hour session ended, once more made clear, price could be an element within the system. “If we can not do it inexpensive we won’t go into manufacturing and that is one thing that others haven’t understood. As a result of we’re trying on the threats from a multi-domain perspective, to ensure I’ve redundant capabilities, and I haven’t got single factors of failure, so if boost- part intercept from area just isn’t inexpensive and scalable, we won’t produce it as a result of we’ve different choices to get after it.”
In the course of the listening to, Guetlein and the others made clear what an extended, pricey and complex course of the Golden Dome will contain.
For instance, when Guetlein was requested what number of American cities are at the moment protected by Patriot or Terminal Excessive Altitude Space Protection (THAAD) batteries – the U.S. Military’s current ground-based anti-missile items he referred to above — he answered, “At the moment, none.”
I keep in mind again within the 1950-to-1970 Chilly Conflict days when the U.S. Military deployed nuclear-armed Nike surface-to-air missile batteries round main cities similar to Washington, D.C., Chicago, Detroit, Minneapolis, and the Florida coast to intercept Soviet missiles or bombers. One instance: again then 19 Nike anti-air websites ringed New York Metropolis.
As I learn Guetlein, Golden Dome would require Patriot and THAAD batteries to be deployed to lots of of U.S. cities to supply the safety President Trump envisioned.
At the moment, a single Patriot battery price $1.1 billion — $400 million for the radar, management station and launchers plus one other $690 million for the interceptor missiles, at some $4 million every. As well as, it takes 90 service personnel to function that Patriot battery. A single battery can shield an space with a 42-mile protection radius, relying on the encircling terrain, whereas its radar can observe as much as 50 potential targets and have interaction 5 concurrently.
A Patriot battery acts as a terminal-phase defend in opposition to tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, drones, and superior plane.
The U.S. Military right this moment operates roughly 15-16 Patriot battalions, consisting of some 60 lively batteries, with some 30+ stationed inside the U.S., whereas the remaining are deployed in Europe, the Center East, and the Indo-Pacific area.
A single THAAD battery, designed to intercept short-, medium-, and intermediate-range ballistic missiles, usually prices between $1 billion and $2.7 billion. A battery is comprised of six truck-mounted launchers, 48+ interceptors, the AN/TPY-2 radar, and hearth management items. Once more, some 90 personnel are wanted to function a THAAD battery.
As of June 2025, the Military had simply eight THAAD batteries with 4 stationed abroad — in Guam, South Korea, Israel and Center East — and 4 on U.S. Military bases at house.
Supplementing these terminal-phase protection programs, in contemplating this new Golden Dome idea, is the Floor-Based mostly Midcourse Protection (GMD), the one operational U.S. system theoretically designed to defend your entire U.S. in opposition to long-range ballistic missiles. Nevertheless, GMD is designed to defend in opposition to restricted ICBM threats from rogue nations similar to North Korea and Iran and never the superior ICBM capabilities of Russia and China.
GMD consists of a space-based and ground-based world community of sensors and radars to detect and observe threats; command, management, battle administration and communications; a hearth management system that may calculate interception factors; and simply 44 Floor primarily based Interceptors (GBI), 40 at Fort Greely, Alaska, and 4 deployed to Vandenberg Air Pressure Base, California. President Trump has requested funding for 20 extra GBI interceptors to be deployed in the US.
Every GBI has price roughly $90 million and the GMD system as a complete has been estimated to have price over $40 billion.
The U.S. Missile Protection Company (MDA) in 2021 awarded Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin contracts to develop a Subsequent Technology Interceptor (NGI) as a follow-on to the GBI. In April 2024, the MDA introduced it had chosen Lockheed Martin as the only prime contractor for the NGI program’s improvement part.
The NGI plan referred to as for the primary new interceptors to be operational by 2028 and the ultimate multi-year contract to be value an estimated $17 billion.
When Guetlein informed the Home subcommittee final week “Golden Dome for America just isn’t a single or static weapon system, however an built-in ‘system of programs,’” these three – Patriot, THAAD and GMD — are the fundamental programs I consider he was speaking about.
There may be additionally the Navy’s AEGIS shipboard anti-missile system, which additionally gives midcourse and terminal interceptions. However apart from the one land-based AEGIS system in Europe, the rest look like wanted to guard the fleet.
Guetlein defined, “The structure that we’re constructing is a really versatile open structure design system in order that we will constantly modernize it because the risk continues to mature. It isn’t a static structure. So we’ll proceed to improve alongside the best way to get after the risk.”
He claimed his new system “will improve the variety of threats we will defend in opposition to for a fraction of the associated fee…by constructing a modular, layered, defense-in-depth ‘system of programs’ the place all parts can function independently and, due to this fact, will be changed with out having to rebuild your entire enterprise.”
Guetlein stated, “We’re going to ship an operational functionality by the summer time of [20]28 that may have the ability to shield the homeland in opposition to quite a lot of threats. The last word goal structure goes to be $185 billion. That is $175 billion as recognized by the President of the US and an extra $10 billion to speed up some area capabilities that weren’t initially a part of our structure.”
One other Home subcommittee witness, Lieutenant Basic Heath Collins, Director of the Missile Protection Company, launched the concept directed vitality weapons, lasers, would even be a part of the Golden Dome program.
“We’re actually placing extra consideration into probably game-changing directed vitality,” Collins stated. “Capabilities in an unmanned air platform is what we’re targeted on so we will deliver that functionality to the sting of the struggle and skinny the herd of UAVs [unmanned air vehicles] – probably air threats and the like. So, we’re very into that and we’re driving by on that experimentation as we as we transfer ahead.”
Talking of Patriot and THAAD, Collins stated , “Now we have some very confirmed programs with unbelievable functionality…We’re all the time driving to determine drive the price of these down. One by the acceleration in portions that we will speak about. We’ll have a
financial savings in these. However these are fairly beautiful and distinctive weapons. As we transfer ahead we’re persevering with to push directed vitality and non-kinetics to alter the associated fee equation.”
Close to the shut of the listening to, Gen. Guetlein was requested to sum up “in layman’s phrases,” why Golden Dome was the precise choice to fulfill the present risk.
Guetlein responded partly, “We’re seeing threats coming from the multi-domain setting that means they’re coming from air, they’re coming from the ocean, they’re coming from area, they’re coming from land. They [U.S. adversaries] have discovered get some low-cost threats in there as properly to problem our depth, our defenses.”
Guetlein concluded, “That is driving a requirement for elevated journal depth [an adequate supply of interceptors] and a requirement for decrease price options to get after these sectors. That is what Golden Dome is specializing in… change that protection equation. And we’re doing that by partnerships with business, partnerships with academia and partnerships with the nationwide labs.”
I consider the reality is, because the U.S. found in the course of the Reagan years, that missile offenses will all the time defeat missile defenses, and whereas an Iron Dome protection will be arrange for a small nation – Israel — no Golden Dome will be established to guard a big nation such because the U.S.
And, satirically, making an attempt to create a defensive system will finally result in a extra aggressive offensive arms race than exists right this moment.
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