The USS Maryland submarine conducted a successful test flight of Lockheed Martin's Trident II D5 Fleet Ballistic Missile on Aug. 31 in the Atlantic Ocean, the company said Tuesday. U.S. Navy photo

SUNNYVALE, Calif., Sept. 13 (UPI) -- The USS Maryland submarine conducted a successful test flight of Lockheed Martin's Trident II D5 Fleet Ballistic Missile on Aug. 31 in the Atlantic Ocean, the company said Tuesday.

The flight test was an element of a demonstration and shakedown operation to certify the boat's crew and weapon system for strategic outload and patrol, Lockheed said in a statement.


It was the 161st successful Trident II launch since 1989.

The missile was converted into a test configuration using a Lockheed test missile kit that contains range safety devices, tracking systems and flight telemetry instrumentation.

The Trident II D5 is deployed aboard Ohio-class submarines.

The three-stage ballistic missile can travel a nominal range of 4,000 nautical miles and can carry multiple independently targeted re-entry bodies.