ICBM Modernization: Status of the Peacekeeper Rail Garrison Missile System

In response to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Department of Defense's (DOD) progress in developing the Peacekeeper Rail Garrison Project, which would deploy intercontinental ballistic missiles.

GAO found that: (1) DOD approved the project for full-scale development in 1988, with initial operational capability (IOC) in 1991; (2) although DOD developed an acquisition schedule with concurrent development and production activities that could reasonably meet the IOC date, DOD would only have completed about 2 years of the 4-year test program; (3) the estimated costs for the Rail Garrison project would total about $7.4 billion, excluding the acquisition of Peacekeeper missiles; (4) the final cost of deploying 100 Peacekeeper missiles in silos and rail garrisons depended on congressional funding actions and the impact of the concurrent development and production components; (5) it was too early to assess the program's technical performance, since it was in the early developmental stages; and (6) the Air Force may need to acquire land adjacent to seven installations or relocate existing base facilities to accommodate rail garrison facilities.