The Aegis JDS KONGO, which had been upgraded with the BMD operational capability, armed with Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) Block IA missiles, conducted a SM-3 flight test off Kauai Island in Hawaii at 12:12 p.m. local time on December 17, 2007 (7:12 a.m. Japan time on December 18). The JDS KONGO’s crew successfully completed Japan Flight Test Mission 1 (JFTM-1) by intercepting a ballistic missile target launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF) at Kauai, outside the atmosphere.