Reagan memorial groundbreaking held

SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Sept. 4 (UPI) -- An official groundbreaking ceremony has been held for the Ronald W. Reagan Missile Defense Memorial at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

Founder and president of the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance, Riki Ellison, and Col. Steven Tanous, 30th Space Wing Commander, broke ground at the construction site where official construction has begun.

"The site is located on a hill with a magnificent view of the Ronald Reagan Missile Defense Site against the backdrop of the California landscape and the Pacific Ocean," Ellison said, in a statement. "Currently at this site are four ground-based long-range defensive missiles housed in four silos.

"Three of these missiles are fully operational and are in place protecting the United States, and the remaining interceptor is a test missile which will fly in an upcoming intercept test. This marks a current total of 23 operational deployed ground-based interceptors on alert. Twenty of those interceptors are deployed in Fort Greely, Alaska. Having these missiles located in California allows for an extra 10 minutes in decision-making time, as well as an extra layer to increase redundancy and success."

During his time in office Reagan pushed for the controversial missile defense system popularly referred to as Star Wars. Officials from the program say missiles can be deployed to knock down pending attacks.

The memorial will feature a bronze bust and plaque to honor the 40th president and is scheduled for completion in March 2008.