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United States Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has announced that the first test of the new multi-layered homeland missile defense initiative — the Golden Dome for America — was a success.
“Today, the first milestone test of Golden Dome for America (GDA) was a full mission success — and I was honored to witness it firsthand,” he said on X.
“Cutting edge directed energy was harnessed and the Dynamic Defense Autonomous Defeat (DDAD) system flawlessly and autonomously cued, targeted, and eliminated a multitude of incoming threats. This test was executed on schedule — and dynamically defeated every threat. I watched our elite warfighters integrate with next-generation technology to stop incoming drones and cruise missiles dead in their tracks. Traditional Primes and emerging Primes are competing, collaborating, and winning—delivering on President Trump’s priority. This historic milestone was only made possible by the One Big Beautiful Bill—giving us the funding to deliver on the ultimate shield to protect America. President Trump is making President Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) vision a reality. With Golden Dome, the War Department will defend our homeland more powerfully than ever before. Golden Dome is real, powerful, and on track.”
In January 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump ordered the development and deployment of the Golden Dome for America, a next-generation missile defense system.
Cost estimates for the Golden Dome program range from $175 billion (White House), to $1.2 trillion (Congressional Budget Office).