Strategic Defense Initiative

The Strategic Defense Initiative program is developing three types of kinetic kill interceptors intended to destroy incoming missiles by colliding with them head-on at speeds of up to 30,000 miles an hour. Brilliant Pebbles, a space-based interceptor, would be the first line of defense. Next, a ground-based interceptor would zero in on targets above the earth's atmosphere. Finally, a different ground-based interceptor would attack targets after they have reentered the earth's atmosphere. From January 1990 through March 1992, the Strategic Defense Initiative Organization (SDIO) conducted seven flight tests of early experimental versions. SDIO claimed that five of the seven flight tests were successes and the other two were failures. GAO concludes that SDIO inaccurately described some results of four of the seven tests.

GAO found that the: (1) Kinetic Kill Vehicle Integrated Technology Experiment (KITE) utilizes a shroud to protect the optical window sensor at the missile's front; (2) Army Strategic Defense Command inaccurately claimed that the KITE test successfully showed the shroud's effectiveness, but accurately claimed that the window cooling system functioned properly; (3) Army Strategic Defense Command accurately reported the KITE-2 test as a failure due to explosion at ignition; (4) Exoatmospheric Reentry Vehicle Interceptor Subsystem (ERIS) program is designed to resolve technical issues in developing a ground-based interceptor system; (5) Army Strategic Defense Command accurately claimed that the first ERIS test sucessfully met test plan goals, but inaccurately claimed that target discrimination was achieved; (6) ERIS-2 test failed to intercept the target and the Army Strategic Defense Command accurately explained the reasons for failure; (7) Lightweight Exoatmospheric Projectile (LEAP) program is designed to develop the smallest, lightest, kinetic kill interceptor possible; (8) LEAP tests succeeded in achieving test set up goals, but altitude and target positioning information claims were inaccurate; (9) Brilliant Pebbles interceptor project is designed to destroy ballistic missiles within the first two stages of their flight; (10) claims that Brilliant Pebbles test was 90-percent sucessful in light of reduced objectives, that increasingly sophisticated tests were successful, and that Phase I testing had been completed were overstated and inaccurate; (11) SDIO statements regarding the failure of the first test due to information transmission malfunctions were accurate; and (12) tracking software for intercepting targets was never tested and more difficult daytime tests were never conducted.