Aegis Combat System: Full Timeline

15 milestones · Page 1 of 1

1. Dec 1969Contract awardConfirmed

   RCA receives Aegis engineering development contract

   RCA was contracted to design and develop Aegis Mk 7 Engineering Development Model 1. This dates the contract rather than a public unveiling.

2. Nov 1973MilestoneConfirmed

   Engineering model undergoes sailor-operated land test

   Sailors operated and maintained the engineering model during a two-day land-based FAST CRUISE operational test before its transfer to USS Norton Sound.

3. May 16, 1974MilestoneConfirmed

   Aegis engineering model intercepts drone targets at sea

   Aegis EDM-1 aboard USS Norton Sound intercepted two drone aircraft targets during its initial missile engagement. Earlier land tests prevent treating this as the first hardware test.

4. 1983FieldedConfirmed

   First Aegis ship enters service

   USS Ticonderoga was commissioned and deployed in 1983; no public-unveil date is established here.

5. 1993ExportConfirmed

   Japan joins the Aegis fleet

   Japan’s Self-Defense Forces became an Aegis operator in 1993; the source supports year precision.

6. 2008ExportConfirmed

   Republic of Korea joins the Aegis fleet

   South Korea joined the international Aegis fleet with the commissioning of Sejong the Great.

7. May 9, 2012MilestoneConfirmed

   Aegis BMD 4.0.1 completes first successful intercept

   USS Lake Erie completed the first successful live-fire intercept by the second-generation Aegis BMD 4.0.1 system with an SM-3 Block IB. The event date uses Hawaii local time.

8. Nov 6, 2014MilestoneConfirmed

   Baseline 9.C1 demonstrates integrated air and missile defense

   USS John Paul Jones used Baseline 9.C1 in the first live-fire test of Aegis IAMD Radar Priority Mode, engaging ballistic and cruise-missile targets nearly simultaneously.

9. Dec 9, 2015MilestoneConfirmed

   Aegis Ashore completes first intercept test

   The land-based Aegis test complex in Hawaii conducted its first intercept flight test. The event occurred December 9 Hawaii time; the release was published December 10.

10. 2016FieldedConfirmed

    Aegis Ashore enters service in Romania

    The U.S. Aegis Ashore installation in Deveselu became operational in 2016. It is a U.S. deployment hosted in Romania, not a Romanian export sale.

11. Nov 16, 2020MilestoneConfirmed

    Aegis BMD demonstrates intercept of ICBM-class test target

    USS John Finn and an SM-3 Block IIA intercepted an ICBM-representative target in the FTM-44 developmental test near Hawaii. This records a demonstration, not a declaration of operational capability.

12. Jul 10, 2024MilestoneConfirmed

    NATO announces Poland Aegis Ashore site mission-ready

    NATO announced that the U.S. Aegis Ashore site in Redzikowo was operational and available to defend the Alliance. The date records NATO’s announcement, not an inferred first operational day.

13. Dec 10, 2024MilestoneConfirmed

    Aegis Guam completes first local ballistic intercept test

    The Aegis Guam configuration participated in FEM-02, intercepting a ballistic test target. This was a developmental demonstration supporting the future Guam Defense System.

14. Mar 24, 2025MilestoneConfirmed

    Stellar Banshee demonstrates tracking and simulated engagement

    USS Pinckney tested Sea Based Terminal Increment 3 in FTX-40 against a hypersonic representative target. The engagement was simulated; this entry does not record a live intercept.

15. Mar 19, 2026MilestoneConfirmed

    Japan ASEV integration completes two live-target tracking events

    JFTX-01 events on March 17 and 19 tested SPY-7 integrated with the Aegis Weapon System. Both ended in virtual engagements; the date records completion of this two-event test.