How can the Air Force be sure that its cruise missiles will fly where they are supposed to and will not hit the PFS facility?
Cruise missiles tested on the UTTR must have Flight Termination Systems (FTSs), which are designed to quickly end the flight of the missile if a problem occurs. The FTS can bring the missile to the ground well within the 2.3-mile distance maintained between missile flight paths and inhabited areas on the UTTR. Range Safety Officers can activate the FTS at any time if necessary. The UTTR has never experienced an FTS failure. So the chance that a cruise missile would hit the PFSF is extraordinarily low. Top Q: Even though the chance of an aircraft ever hitting the PFS facility is much less than one in a million per year, and the chance of a cruise missile hitting the facility is extraordinarily low, what would happen if one did? A: In all likelihood, not very much. The concrete and steel casks that would contain the spent nuclear fuel would likely prevent any radioactive material from being released to the environment. The mostly probable cause of an F-16 accident near Skull Valley would
