“There are consequences to that and we have to deliver for the nation, and that’s going to require a team sport,” said Lt. Gen. Michael Lutton, keynote speaker at the symposium.

Lutton said that team sport includes industry, academia, communities, allies and partners, and military.

“We absolutely have to deliver for this nation. Given the backdrop of what is happening in this world, we absolutely have to deliver for them,” he said.

Lutton, of Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, is a former commander of the 91st Missile Wing at Minot Air Force Base. He is deputy commander of Global Strike Command and deputy commander of Air Forces Strategic-Air, U.S. Strategic Command. Global Strike Command’s mission is to provide strategic deterrence, global strike and combat support.

Eloise Ogden/MDN About 240 people attended the North Dakota Nuclear Triad Symposium in Minot on Tuesday.

Minot AFB is the only base with two legs of the nuclear triad – B-52 bombers and Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles. The Navy has submarine-launched ballistic missiles.

As for what is involved in the transition, Lutton said, “Right now we are planning to transition from the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile to the Sentinel.”

The Sentinel weapons system, formerly known as the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD), will replace the aging Minuteman III ICBMs, including those in the Minot missile field.

Currently, Lutton said, the Sentinel program is going through a process of recertification and Air Force Global Strike Command is a participant in the process.

“That certification is required by law and the outcome, obviously, will determine the future of Sentinel,” Lutton said.

He said that does not mean certain actions and activities within Sentinel stop but, in fact, quite the opposite. There continues to be actions and activities within that program, including a recent groundbreaking held at F.E. Warren AFB, Wyoming, for military construction.

“Our B-21 Raider will replace both the B-1 and B-2, and it will be the power projection platform for our nation during the future,” Lutton said.

The Raider, the nation’s newest bomber, will be a dual-capable penetrating strike stealth bomber, capable of delivering both conventional and nuclear munitions, according to Air Force information.

Lutton said he has not seen the Raider yet except for what is available publicly.

“But quite an impressive platform and it will deliver deterrence for this nation well into the future,” he said.

He said the B-52H bomber will be recapitalized into the B-52J and will receive new engines and a new radar. He said the B-52 will go well beyond 2030 as the deterrent platform providing nuclear and conventional global strike capability.

Minot AFB and Barksdale AFB are the only bases with B-52 bombers.

“Our Long-Range Standoff will replace the air-launched cruise missile – the ALCM. That is also a major defense acquisition program,” he said.

The National Airborne Operations Center or NAOC will be replaced by the Strategic Airborne Operation Center or SAOC, Lutton said. He said that is still early in its acquisition process.

He said all of the nuclear command, control and communications are in one way, shape or another being recapitalized or modernized within the United States Navy and United States Space Force.

“That is also a key critical aspect,” Lutton said.

He said the weapons generation facilities will also be recapitalized. The first one is done at F.E. Warren Air Force Base and ground was just broken for the weapons generation facility at Malmstrom AFB, Montana.

“There will be five weapons generation facilities in total across our fiscal year defense program,” he said.

Looking at all this through the lens of team sport and who is on the team, Lutton said, “Industry is on that team with us. Our uniformed military, our civilian military, our national labs, our communities are all a part of that team that is going to deliver that modernization for the nation – all within the backdrop of a very challenging landscape for our nation as we go forward. We cannot afford to lose at that transition.” He said the capabilities that are being modernized will deliver nuclear deterrence and national security for this nation.

“About 12 miles from here is the heartbeat of that,” Lutton continued, referring to Minot AFB.

Lutton said people and communities are critical to the effort.

“When you put those three things together – the team sport, our people and our communities – they are the difference,” Lutton said.

About 240 people attended the symposium presented by Minot Task Force 21 of the Minot Area Chamber EDC. The symposium included a lineup of military and civilian speakers focusing on sustaining credible nuclear deterrence amid growing challenges, including the state of nuclear deterrence and threats from the Chinese and Russian regimes.