Tuimes
By Roland Watson
After $80 billion and years of research, President Bush’s anti-missile shield cannot even get off the launchpad
PRESIDENT BUSH’S ambition to protect the US with an anti-missile defence shield was dealt a heavy blow yesterday when a key test ended in failure.
The interceptor rocket, intended to bring down a hostile missile 100 miles above the Earth, failed even to launch.
It was the first test in more than two years of the “Son of Star Wars” missile defence system that has already cost $80 billion (£41 billion).
The result makes it all but impossible for Mr Bush to deploy the existing technology by the end of the year as he had planned. In the longer term the mock warhead, which yesterday enjoyed an uninterrupted trajectory, may take the entire project with it to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-1406358,00.html