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Wynne heads to Minot to review nuke procedure

MINOT, N.D. — The secretary of the Air Force, Michael Wynne, is expected to visit Minot Air Force Base on Friday to go over procedures for handling nuclear weapons there.

The visit comes after Pentagon officials confirmed Air Force Times reports that a B-52 bomber from Minot was mistakenly armed with six nuclear warheads and flown across several states last month.

“Secretary Wynne takes the recent breakdown in the munitions system very seriously and is committed to ensuring munitions processes are safe, secure and absolutely reliable,” a statement from the base said.

“I don’t think this can be considered routine,” said Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D. “This is the secretary of the Air Force coming because there has been a very serious matter develop. He is an outstanding person and I think he wants to hear, as he should, what happened here to make certain it never happens again. “

The Air Combat Command has ordered a command-wide stand down Friday to review procedures in response to the Aug. 30 incident. Officials there was minimal risk to crews and the public because of safety features designed into the weapons.