US mistakenly shipped ballistic missiles to Taiwan

The Air Force mistakenly shipped to Taiwan four electrical fuses designed for use on intercontinental ballistic missiles...

The Air Force mistakenly shipped to Taiwan four electrical fuses designed for use on intercontinental ballistic missiles, the US Defence Department said on Tuesday, but has since recovered them and launched an investigation.

The error is particularly disturbing because of its indirect link to nuclear weaponry and because of the sensitivity of US arms sales to Taiwan, which China regularly denounces as provocative.

At a Pentagon news conference, Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne said the misshipped items were four electrical fuses for nose cone assemblies for ICBMs. He also said they were delivered to Taiwan in 2006 and had been sent instead of helicopter batteries that had been ordered by Taiwan.

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Wynne said the investigation is meant to sort out what happened and how.

The fuses were manufactured for use on a Minuteman strategic nuclear missile but contained no nuclear materials. It is the second nuclear-related mistake involving the Air Force in recent months. Last August an Air Force B-52 bomber was mistakenly armed with six nuclear-tipped cruise missiles and flown across several states. At the time, the pilot and crew were unaware they had nuclear arms aboard.