Said to be the largest incident of its kind, the Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James said it emerged during an investigation into alleged illegal drug possession. Nuclear arsenal, however, remains secure, he said.
James said the officers range in rank from second lieutenants to captains in the cheating that occurred around last August and September.
‘As part of that investigation, we discovered just a couple of days ago late in the weekend that 34 missile launch officers at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana were involved in the compromise of answers to a launch officer proficiency test,’ he said.
There are about 190 officers overseeing readiness of nuclear weapons systems in Montana. As such, the scandal has touched nearly 20 per cent of its force.
Describing this as ‘absolutely unacceptable’ behaviour, and completely contrary to core values in the Air Force, James said he has great confidence in the security and the effectiveness of US’ ICBM force.
‘This was a failure of some of our airmen. It was not a failure of the nuclear mission,’ he said.
Before going public with the investigations, he briefed Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on allegations that several dozen ICBM officers cheated on their proficiency tests.
James said the officers range in rank from second lieutenants to captains in the cheating that occurred around last August and September.
‘As part of that investigation, we discovered just a couple of days ago late in the weekend that 34 missile launch officers at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana were involved in the compromise of answers to a launch officer proficiency test,’ he said.
There are about 190 officers overseeing readiness of nuclear weapons systems in Montana. As such, the scandal has touched nearly 20 per cent of its force.
Describing this as ‘absolutely unacceptable’ behaviour, and completely contrary to core values in the Air Force, James said he has great confidence in the security and the effectiveness of US’ ICBM force.
‘This was a failure of some of our airmen. It was not a failure of the nuclear mission,’ he said.
Before going public with the investigations, he briefed Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on allegations that several dozen ICBM officers cheated on their proficiency tests.