They can test the missiles and reentry vehicles, everything except the nuclear warhead. The closest those come to a test is a supercomputer simulation, since those tests are forbidden by treaty.
Minuteman III has an excellent but not perfect [0] failure rate. Some other older systems, like the UK's submarine launched Trident missiles... not so much.
Th UK Trident 2 missiles are literally the same missiles used by the US submarines operating in the Atlantic - both sets of submarines are supplied by a shared pool:
I had the same thought. They lovingly take Minutemen out of their silos and launch them after reassembly from Vandenburg AFB or someplace for a test. I’m pretty sure trident tests happen at sea.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUg7x1zo7D0
They can test the missiles and reentry vehicles, everything except the nuclear warhead. The closest those come to a test is a supercomputer simulation, since those tests are forbidden by treaty.
Minuteman III has an excellent but not perfect [0] failure rate. Some other older systems, like the UK's submarine launched Trident missiles... not so much.
[0] https://www.airandspaceforces.com/icbm-test-failure-nuclear-...