5 Feb 2026
https://imetatronink.substack.com/p/bottom-of-the-barrel

I have, on multiple occasions, derided the Center for Strategic and
International Studies #EmpirePropaganda mill. But, lo and behold, I have come
upon something commendable published by them: an early December 2025 analysis [1] of
the acutely depleted United States air defense missile inventories, authored by
Wes Rumbaugh.

In his report, Rumbaugh touches upon all four of the US missile defense
interceptors: PAC-3, THAAD, SM-3, and SM-6. But for the purposes of this
article, we shall confine ourselves to the topic of the THAAD anti-ballistic
missile interceptors.

First, a reminder of the history of the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense
interceptor. Few people recall now how many years THAAD languished in its
development and testing phase. It was so woefully ineffective that the program
was nearly canceled on multiple occasions, was saved as a result of various
political considerations, and only went to operational status after the Pentagon
repeatedly dumbed down the testing scenarios until it could finally intercept a
target missile.

In short, it was widely considered a debacle. And that is no doubt why the
Pentagon only ever procured eight THAAD batteries.

Ctd ...

Links
1 - https://www.csis.org/analysis/depleting-missile-defense-interceptor-inventory