1st Lt Michael Alonso and 1st Lt Lantz Balthazar of Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana have been charged
Daily Mail/AP: Two nuke launch officers face drug charges and could be court-martialed for having ecstasy, cocaine and bath salts at base with missiles armed with nuclear warheads
* 1st Lt Michael Alonso and 1st Lt Lantz Balthazar have both been charged
* Members of Missile Squadron at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana
* Malmstrom missile wing operates missiles armed with nuclear warheads
* Hearing will see if enough criminal evidence to warrant a court-martial
* Third officer was charged in December and court-martialed in January
Two Air Force nuclear missile launch officers who are facing drug charges related to ecstasy, cocaine and bath salts now face hearings to determine whether they will be court-martialed.
1st Lt Michael Alonso and 1st Lt Lantz Balthazar have been charged in cases stemming from an investigation that led to the disclosure last year of a separate exam-cheating scandal.
One of their fellow missile officers who was a target of the same investigation pleaded guilty to illegal drug use in January and was kicked out of the service, the Air Force said on Friday.
WNU Editor: I suspect that this is just the tip of the iceberg.