Photo By Airman 1st Class Ethan Wilson | Personnel assigned to Malmstrom Air Force Base visit the 377th Test and Evaluation...... read more read more
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VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Airmen from the 341st Missile Maintenance Squadron helped prepare and transport an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile for Glory Trip 256, an operational test launch conducted May 20, 2026, at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. For the Malmstrom Air Force Base maintainers selected to support the mission, the launch marked the culmination of months of planning, technical preparation and long hours spent ensuring the missile system arrived ready to perform exactly as intended. Tech. Sgt. Marcus Rondot, 341st Missile Maintenance Squadron missile maintenance team chief, led a team of certified Airmen chosen to transport the missile from Malmstrom to Vandenberg. “Our team is the best team in the Air Force,” said Rondot. “We were selected because of the trust placed in our experience,disciplineand attention todetail.[People]can rest easy knowing that teams like ours are keeping these systems at their peak capabilities every day.” Glory Trip launches are the visible part of the mission, but for maintainers, the real work is everything that happens before anyone sees the missile leaving the ground. The Airmen of the 341 MMXSare responsible formaintainingthe immediate readiness of the ICBM fleet at Malmstrom. During preparations for Glory Trip 256, the responsibility extended beyond the missile field as the team worked to preserve the integrity of the weapon system throughout transport and relocation ahead of the launch. Missile maintenance Airmen complete months of technical training at Vandenberg to learn the fundamentals of sustaining the nation’s strategic deterrence mission before receivingadditionalhands-on instruction on their assigned systems. For Glory Trip 256, Malmstrom’s team drew on that training and experience to execute a mission with no room for error. The selected team spent the week at Vandenberg, with some Airmen working up to 20 hours in a single day to support the launch. The long hours andhigh standardsreflected the level of precisionrequiredfor a mission designed todemonstratereadiness,reliabilityand effectiveness of the MMIII weapon system. “Most people will only ever see the launch, but I see the Airmen behind it,” said Col. Luke Stover, 341st Maintenance Group commander. “This team was selected for a reason, and they proved exactly why. Their professionalism, resilience and pride in the mission wereevidentfrom start to finish.” Although missile maintainers carry out their mission with thehopethey will never see the system used in combat, operational test launches offer a rare opportunity towitnessthe direct result of their work in a controlled environment. “It’s a bad day if [the missiles are] launching,” saidSenior AirmanKolton Weaver,missilemaintenancetechnician with the 341MMXS.“To be able to see a missile launch in a safe environment keeps us motivated and helps us see the end goal of our work.” While launches like Glory Trip 256 are scheduled years in advance, preparation for the mission begins months before launch day. For Rondot’s crew, that meantnearly 280days of planning, coordination and technical work leading up to the event. Through long hours, technicalexpertiseand disciplined execution, the Airmen of the 341st Missile Maintenance Squadron helped make Glory Trip 256 possible,demonstratingthat the strength of the nation’s deterrent depends not only on the weapon system itself, but on the people trusted to sustain it.
| Date Taken: | 05.21.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 05.21.2026 20:24 |
| Story ID: | 565964 |
| Location: | LOMPOC, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 16 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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