KAUAI, HAWAII— The U.S. and Japan have conducted a successful missile interception test with an interceptor launched from a guided-missile destroyer.
The test took place on Friday night off Kauai island in Hawaii, according to a U.S. Navy press release.
A medium-range ballistic missile target was launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility on the island. The USS John Paul Jones destroyer detected the target with its onboard radar and successfully intercepted it with its Aegis Missile Defense system.
“The missile, developed jointly by a Japanese and U.S. government and industry team, is vitally important to both our nations and will ultimately improve our ability to defend against increasing ballistic missile threats around the world,” MDA Director Vice-Admiral Jim Syring said in the press release.
The U.S. Navy has 62 guided-missile destroyers equipped with the Aegis system while Japan has six, CNN reported.