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VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AP) — The Air Force test-launched an unarmed Minuteman 3 missile from California for the second time this week.
The missile blasted off at 3:53 a.m. Friday from Vandenberg Air Force Base on the coast northwest of Los Angeles.
The Air Force said the missile carried a test re-entry vehicle that hit a target area in the Pacific Ocean near Guam 40 minutes after liftoff.
Col. Shane Clark, the 30th Space Wing vice commander, said in a statement that conducting two test-launches in less than a week demonstrated the capabilities of the intercontinental ballistic missile fleet and crews.
The week's first launch occurred early Monday.
The test involved personnel from Vandenberg's 576th Flight Test Squadron and the 341st Missile Wing at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana.
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