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A Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) destroyer on Wednesday successfully shot down a medium-range mock ballistic missile in a test off Hawaii, the Defense Ministry said. In the drill conducted in cooperation with the US Navy, the ballistic missile was launched from a US military range facility on Kauai Island. Four minutes later, the MSDF's Myoko, equipped with the Aegis advanced missile tracking system, detected the target and fired a sea-based Standard Missile 3 (SM-3). The US-made interceptor hit the target more than 100 kilometers above the Pacific Ocean three minutes later after launching. The ministry said the successful missile test proved the effectiveness of Japan's missile defense system, adding that it plans to complete the system by March 2011. The drill was Japan's third attempt to test-fire high-tech SM-3 interceptors. The nation successfully conducted its first SM-3 test in 2007, but the second attempt last year failed when the interceptor lost track of the target.