The Nuclear Weapons Council quietly selected the W80 warhead last month for use in the new long-rangernstandoff weapon (LRSO), a National Nuclear Security Administration spokesman confirmed to NS&D Monitor thisrnweek. The W80 is the warhead currently used on the Air Force’s air-launched cruise missile, and it was pickedrnover the W84 warhead, which was used on the ground-launched cruise missile and is part of the inactive nuclearrnstockpile. The W84 was retired when the ground-launched cruise missile was prohibited by the 1987rnIntermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. “Of all the options considered, the W80’s size and performancerncharacteristics best fit the needs of the LRSO program,” NNSA spokesman Derrick Robinson said in a statement.
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