A SM-3 Block IIA is launched from the USS John Finn, an Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System-equipped destroyer, Nov. 16, 2020, as part of Flight Test Aegis Weapons System-44 (FTM-44). FTM-44 is a developmental test satisfying a Congressional mandate to evaluate the feasibility of the SM-3 Block IIA missile's capability to defeat an ICBM threat. The SM-3 Block IIA was originally designed and built for the Intermediate-range Ballistic Missile threat set.
