US Air Force to conduct another missile test as North Korea tensions rise, officials say

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Officials: US to test another long-range missile Wednesday

Jennifer Griffin reports from the Pentagon

Amid rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula, the U.S. Air Force is set to conduct another long-range missile test on Wednesday, three U.S. officials told Fox News.

The new test of a nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile comes one week after a similar test, and in the wake of a series of defiant actions by the rogue North Korean regime.

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The Minuteman III missile to be launched Wednesday by the Air Force will be unarmed, officials said.

Pentagon officials said this new missile test, like the last one, is “long planned.”

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The Air Force will use the same launch point and test range in the Pacific again on Wednesday, officials said.

Last week, a Minuteman III was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California and traveled roughly 4,200 miles before splashing down in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands, about 2,500 miles southwest of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean.

The new ICBM test comes days after another failed North Korean missile test on Saturday and as the USS Carl Vinson has arrived off the Korean Peninsula to train with South Korea’s navy.

The 30th Space Wing commander, Col. John Moss, said Minuteman launches have been essential to verify the status of the U.S. nuclear force and to demonstrate the national nuclear capabilities.

In a Minuteman test, a so-called re-entry vehicle travels more than 4,000 miles downrange to a target at Kwajalein Atoll near the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands.

"Team V is once again ready to work with Air Force Global Strike Command to successfully launch another Minuteman III missile," Moss said. "These Minuteman launches are essential to verify the status of our national nuclear force and to demonstrate our national nuclear capabilities. We are proud of our long history in partnering with the men and women of the 576th Flight Test Squadron to execute these missions for the nation."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.