The US Department of Defense has airlifted a compact nuclear reactor from California to Utah, marking the first time a C-17 military transport aircraft has transported a nuclear microreactor.
In partnership with Hawthorne-based Valar Atomics and the Department of Energy, officials flew the unfueled Ward 250 reactor from March Air Reserve Base to Hill Air Force Base.
The reactor will then be moved to the Utah San Rafael Energy Lab for assessments, where it is expected to reach initial operations capability by July 2026 under Washington’s effort to accelerate domestic nuclear deployment.
‘Monumental Step’
According to the Pentagon, the Valar-assembled Ward 250 has a power capacity of 5 megawatts, which could generate electricity for approximately 5,000 homes.
The reactor is set to begin operating at 100 kilowatts upon fielding and peak at 250 kilowatts this year before ramping up.
Michael Duffey, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, explained that portable reactors such as the Ward 250 could reinforce base energy security and reduce reliance on civilian grids or vulnerable fuel supply lines.
“Powering next generation warfare will require us to move faster than our adversaries, to build a system that doesn’t just equip our warfighters to fight, but equips them to win at extraordinary speed,” Duffey said.
“Today is a monumental step toward building that system.”
‘Nuclear Renaissance’
Commenting on the milestone, Energy Secretary Chris Wright linked the effort to President Donald Trump’s executive orders aimed at speeding nuclear development and improving America’s energy industrial base.
“The American nuclear renaissance is to get that ball moving again, fast, carefully, but with private capital, American innovation and determination,” Wright said.
Alongside the initiative’s potential, critics question related cost and radioactive waste disposal, which remains unresolved as federal officials hold talks with several states.
