Preview of Destruction


 

US Strategic Missiles

Atlas | Thor and Jupiter | Titan I | Titan II | Minuteman I and II |

Minuteman III | Polaris A-3 | ALCM | Peacekeeper | Poseidon | Pershing II |

Trident

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Russian Missiles

SS-4 | SS-9 | SS-11| SS-13 | SS-17 | SS-18 | SS-19 | SS-20 | SS-21 |

SS-25 | SS-X-26 | SS-N-6 | SS-N-8 | SS-N-9 | SS-N-17 | SS-N-18 | SS-N-20 |

SS-N-23 | SS-N-24/26 | SS-NX-27 | AS-4 | AS-6

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US Strategic Missiles

Atlas (SM-65, WS-107A-1)

    The original requirements for he Atlas called for a 240,000 pound vehicle with two 135,000 pound booster engines and a 60,000 pound sustainer engine. The Atlas A would be flown with only the booster engines, while the B and later versions would use the sustainer. The thin-skinned 85 foot long stainless steel missile was delivered at 260,000 pound, with total thrust of 360,000 pounds and a range of 6,325 nautical miles. Atlas was fielded in three versions, the D, E, and F. Atlas continues today as a space workhorse, with Atlas 2 missiles still rolling off the assembly lines at Lockheed Martin. 

    The first test flight for Atlas was missile A4 from Complex 14 at the Cape. Ten seconds after launch, one of the two booster engines failed and the missile was destroyed. On 17 December 1957, Atlas 12A lifted off and its two engines burned for the full programmed two minutes - the missile flew 600 miles down the Eastern Test Range and was declared a complete success. WDD and its follow-on, the Ballistic Missile Division, the AF and SAC changed basing modes, configurations and other factors in the late fifties, because of funding and many other reasons, but by 1959 the basing and configurations were finalized for Atlas D, E and F, Titan, Thor and Jupiter. Development and construction were on the fast track - the first unit to activate was the 576SMS at Vandenberg (Cooke AFB)on 1 April 1958 - the first Atlas D was placed on alert there on 31 October 1959.Atlas D (SM-65D) - deployed in soft, above ground horizontal "coffins" with three missiles and one control center per complex, the Atlas D was guided by a ground-based radio-inertial system. The missiles were raised to a vertical position by the erector before launch, were filled with liquid oxygen (LOX) and RP-1 propellant, and launched. Atlas E (SM-65E) - the radio-inertial guidance was replaced by an all inertial guidance system, and the missiles were deployed singly with one control centerper missile, with a squadron having nine complexes. The "coffin" for the Atlas E was built with a roof at ground level, giving about 25 psi protection against overpressure. Atlas F (SM-65F) - housed in an underground silo with adjoining control center, the Atlas F was filled with LOX and RP-1 at the start of countdown, then raised to ground level by the massive silo elevator. The missile was therefore exposed above ground for a much shorter time than earlier models, and silo and control center were hardened to 100psi for blast protection. Each Atlas F squadron had 12 complexes.

Operational Atlas Units

Atlas D

Unit Missiles Base Activated Closed

576SMS 6 Vandenberg AFB, CA 4/58 4/66

564SMS 6 FE Warren AFB, WY 9/58 9/64

565SMS 9 FE Warren AFB, WY 12/58 12/64

549SMS 9 Offut AFB, NE 8/59 12/64

Atlas E

Unit Missiles Base Activated Closed

576SMS 1 Vandenberg AFB, CA 4/58 4/66

567SMS 9 Fairchild AFB, WA 4/60 6/65

548SMS 9 Forbes AFB, KS 7/60 3/65

566SMS 9 FE Warren AFB, WY 10/60 3/65

Atlas F

Unit Missiles Base Activated Closed

576SMS 2 Vandenberg AFB, WY 4/58 4/66

550SMS 12 Schilling AFB, KS 4/61 6/65

551SMS 12 Lincoln AFB, NE 4/61 6/65

577SMS 12 Altus AFB, OK 6/61 3/65

578SMS 12 Dyess, TX 7/61 3/65

579SMS 12 Walker, NM 9/61 3/65

556SMS 12 Plattsburgh, NY 10/61 3/65

Thor Check back next week for an update

Jupitor (SM-78) Check back next week for an update

Titan I (SM-68, WS-107A-2) Check back next week for an update

Titan I Units

Unit Missiles Base Activated Closed

848SMS 9 Lowry AFB, CO 2/60 6/65

849SMS 9 Lowry AFB, CO 8/60 6/65

850SMS 9 Ellsworth AFB, SD 12/60 3/65

851SMS 9 Beale AFB, CA 2/61 3/65

568SMS 9 Larson AFB, WA 4/61 3/65

569SMS 9 Mt Home AFB, ID 6/61 3/65

Titan II (SM-68B, LGM-25C)

The Titan II, one of the most powerful of all United States ICBMs ever on alert, was first launched in the early sixties. This two-stage, silo launched missile reaches its target by means of an inertial guidance system. The Titan II is powered by rocket engines which utilizes storable liquid propellants, giving it immediate-firing capability at all times. A total of 54 were constructed, these once being deployed with six Strategic Air Command (SAC) squadrons at Davis Montham AFB, Arizona; Little Rock AFB, Arkansas; and McConnell AFB, Kansas. The biggest missile in the west, the Titan II is 103 ft. in length, and its diameter is 10 ft. Launch weight is 330,000 pounds, and its range is 9,325 miles. Two of the 54 missiles were destroyed by accidents in their silos and the remainder 52 were pulled from alert in 1987. Some of these missiles are now being used as space launch vehicles.

Titan II

Units - 9 Missiles Each

Unit Base Activated

570SMS Davis Monthan AFB, AZ 1/62

532SMS McConnell AFB, KS 3/62

573SMS Little Rock AFB, AR 4/62

571SMS Davis Monthan, AZ 5/62

533SMS McConnell AFB, KS 8/62

374SMS Little Rock AFB, AR 9/62

Minuteman I and II (SM-80, LGM-30A and LGM30B) Check back next week for an

update

Minuteman III (SM-80, LGM-30G)

In the late fifties, top priority was given to getting the liquid-propellant ICBMs into service, but these were increasingly shown to be too large, complicated, expensive, and dangerous. The solution was the Minuteman, a three stage, solid-propellant missile whose compact size and ease of handling enabled it to become the principal land based deterrent in the Western world. Originally, conceived as a mobile weapon, it was to have been launched from special trains deployed on the U.S. railroad system. Instead, it was placed in silos scattered over wide areas of the country and controlled from underground launch control centers (LCC). A typical configuration is 150 missiles in a Wing divided into three squadrons of 50 missiles each. Each squadron then has 5 LCCs each having two crewmembers pulling a 24-hour alert. Each crew is responsible for 10 sorties. The Minuteman I, the first version of the missile, was first launched in July of 1961, and was deployed at Malmstrom AFN, Montana in 1962-63. This missile carried one warhead. The Minuteman II replaced this missile adding updated onboard computer and navigational gyro called Pendulous Integrated

Gyroscopic Accelerometer or PIGA. In 1068, the first Minuteman III was test launched at Vandenburg AFB, California. By the early 1970s the missile was deployed at Minot AFB, ND; Malmstrom AFB, MO; F.E. Warren AFB, WY; and Grand Forks AFB, ND. The Minuteman II continued to be deployed at Elsworth AFB SD and Whiteman AFB. MO and 50 at the odd squad at Malmstrom AFB until President Bush called these missiles off alert in the early 1990s. This latest version carries three warheads as well as decoys called chaff and can be retracted remotely instantly from the LCC or an E-4B command aircraft by an ALCC (Air Launch Combat Crew). The MM II has a blunter and wider nose than the MM II and has improved onboard computer. The additional space and improved computer allowed for the Multiple Independent Reentry Vehicle or MIRVs as an option on the MM III. Its length is 59 ft. 8 1/2 inches, and its

diameter is 72.4 inches.

Launch weight is 76, 058 pounds,

and range is 8,078 miles.

GLCM (Gryphon, BGM-109A)

Polaris A-3

The Polaris missile is the product of the most remarkable research and development effort in the U.S. Naval history. The program to develop a submarine-launched guided missile was accomplished by the Navy in the late fifties. The use of solid propellant in the Polaris eliminated the need to carry dangerous liquid fuels aboard ship, and the missile was ejected from its vertical launch tube by a charge of compressed air to avoid rocket ignition inside the submarine. Polaris was originally deployed aboard 41 nuclear submarines of the U.S. Navy, each carrying 16 missiles. These boats were progressively converted to take newer models of missile. The last Polaris A-3 was produced in June 1968, when 1,409 of all versions had been delivered.

Its length is 32 ft. 3 1/2 inches,

and its diameter is 54 inches.

Launch weight is 35,000 pounds,

and its range is 2,880 miles.

ALCM

The air-launched cruise missile or ALCM is potentially one of the most important weapons in the U.S. inventory. Essentially a small pilotless aircraft, it is carried by a B-52 or B-1B bomber. Equipped with folding or retracting wings, tail, and engine air intake, the ALCM can be mounted on internal rotary launchers or external pylons. Compared to other air-to-surface missiles it is easier to intercept, being both larger and slower, but its greater range allows the launch aircraft to stand off from the target at distances of 1,000 miles or more. The ALCM vastly multiplies the number of targets a single bomb can attack, and it also taxes the capacity of the enemy air defenses with the variety of mission profiles it can fly. Its length is 19 ft. 6 inches, wingspan is 12 ft., and diameter is 25 inches. Launch weight is 2,800 pounds, and range is 1,550 miles.

Peacekeeper (LG-118A)

The success and longevity if the Minuteman had cast doubt on the need for replacement, but development in the Soviet ICBMs pointed out the vulnerability of the system. Russian missiles once had the power and accuracy to wipe out the entire Minuteman force with but a fraction of their operational strength. Accordingly, a new U.S. missile was developed. Known initially as MX and later christened Peacekeeper, it embodies revolutionary new concepts in construction, guidance systems, and payload. The Peacekeeper is deployed in former Minuteman silos in Nebraska and Wyoming. Modifications to the silos include underground electronic changes, but no deeping or hardening of the silos. Unlike Minuteman, Peacekeeper will be housed in a special canister designed to protect it from shock and debris prior to launching. Its length is 70 ft. 6 in., and its diameter is 92 in. Launch weight is 187,000 pounds, and range is approx. 7,500 miles.

Poseidon

Poseidon became operational in the early seventies. Development of this enlarged missile was made possible when it was found practical to remove the liner and locating rings from the Polaris missile launch tube. Carrying twice the payload of its predecessor, Poseidon's accuracy was improved by a completely new inertial guidance system in which the missile fire control was linked to the submarine's navigation system. This continuously updated guidance information for all 16 missiles as the submarine changed position. Subsequent major modifications resulted in an even more improved missile. Poseidon was replaced by the more advanced Trident. Poseidon's length is 34 ft., and its diameter is 74 inches. Launch weight is 65,000 pounds, and range is 2,880 miles.

Pershing II

The Pershing II was a US Army ballistic missile designed to be fired in support of ground forces. It was a two-stage solid propellant weapon, which was mounted on heavy-duty wheeled vehicles. These transporters were capable of being airlifted by C-130 aircraft, allowing cross-country deployment of the missile. The Pershing had advanced targeting and launch system, which enabled up to three missiles to be fired in succession from a previously unsurveyed site. Radar guidance in its terminal phase gave the missile extreme accuracy. The Pershing was discontinued under pressure of the European community and the NSF agreement. Its length is 34 ft 9 ½ inches, and its diameter is 39 ¼ inches. Launch weight is 10,141 pounds, and range is 100-460 miles.

Trident

The US Navy began the development of the Trident in the late sixties. This was to be a long-range missile system embodying state-of-the-art advances in structure, propulsion, guidance, and payload. The resulting missile, later named Trident, is basically a Poseidon with third stage, but it has some unique features of its own. During first stage ignition, a long-range probe extends beyond the nose. This forms an inclined shockwave, which improves aerodynamic performance. Its flight guidance system incorporates a stellar sensor, which takes at least one star sighting to refine the trajectory and increase accuracy. A new type of giant submarines, the Ohio class, has been designed to carry the Trident. Much quieter than their predecessors, with improved sonar and communications, these ships will carry 24 missiles. Trident's length is 34 feet, and its diameter is 74 inches. Launch weight is 32,000 pounds, and range is 4,350 miles.


Russian Strategic Missiles

Still under construction. I have decided to put what I have

on-line, but will continue to add and edit as I find the time.

SS-4 Sandal

The SS-4, known by the NATO code name "Sandal," is a Russian medium-range ballistic missile that dates back to the early sixties. It was first publicly displayed in Red Square in 1961. Assumed then to have been inertially guided, it was the first Soviet missile to use storable liquid propellants. The Sandal could be identified by the flared skirt over it's rocket nozzle, and tail fins. It can carry a nuclear or high explosive conventional/chemical warhead. The missile's transportation system includes twelve vehicles, and twenty men are in the erection and launch crew. About 600 system were deployed, mainly threatening western European targets as well as targets in China and Japan. By 1960 the 'cold war' was at it's height and Gary Powers in his U-2 spy plane had been shot down by ab SA-2 Guideline surface-to-air missile deep inside Soviet territory (on the approaches to Sverlovsk on 1 May 1960). In 1962, Sandal received worldwide attention as the weapon that instigated the Cuban Missile Crisis when it was discovered by US reconnaissance aircraft (U-2) that several sites for medium range missile were being prepared. Not long afterwards came the first revealing photos of missiles and fuelling wagons dispersed near the launch sites. The Russians removed these missiles, based in Cuba, only after a US Naval blockade of the island. Sandal's length is 68 feet, and its diameter is 65 inches. Launch weight is 61,728 pounds, and ranges 1,118 miles. Max speed: 4,3000 mph. The SS-4 was superseded by mobile IRBM's and ICBM's which gave the Soviet Army greater flexibility of operation.

SS-9 Scarp

The Scarp was perhaps the formidable weapon ever deployed, with a thermonuclear warhead of 20/25 megaton yield. It was first displayed during a Moscow parade celebrating the 50th Anniversery of the Communist Revolution on November 7, 1967. The SS-9 had a liquid-propellant rocket motors with a ring of six first-stage nozzles surrounded by four permanent vernier nozzles. These nozzles were very evident in pircture of this missile in Red Square. This large ICBM was one of the key factors in America's decision to introduce Minuteman 3 with its MIRV warheads. About the SS-9s warheads, two alternatives were available for the warhead configuration. The first configuration was called the 'space bomb' or also known as a fractional orbital bombardment system (FOBS). The rocket would put its thermonuclear payload into an orbit about 100 miles above the Earth. At a predetermined point, before completion of the first orbit, the payload was intended to be stopped by a retro-rocket so that it would drop precisely on its target. Alternatively, the standard payload was a simple, unguided multiple re-entry vehicle (MRV) made up of three smaller warheads. However, smaller in this case meant 5 megaton warheads. Interestingly, during one test launched from Tyuratam in 1970, observed by US satellites and Naval vessels, an MRV traveled 5,500 miles and re-entered the atmosphere. Three slightly divergent trails marked the course of the dummy warheads, a fourth was the 'bus' container and the fifth was the rocket's final stage. This test was a big concern to the Pentagon. The three inert warheads dispersed to impact 80 miles apart-about the same distance that separates a cluster of three US Minuteman ICBM areas of silo launchers at Malmstrom AFB, MO. The SS-9 was over 113 feet long, about 10 feet longer than the Titan II, and had a body diameter of 10 feet. Max range was estimated to be 5,500 miles

SS-11

During the time the SS-11 was deployed little was known about this system. Ot was believed around 800 of these ICBMs were emplaced around 1970. It was operational in camouflaged silo launchers in 1966 and was eventually replaced by the solid-propellant SS-13 and the SS-17. The SS-11 was powered by storable liquid-propellant rocket engines. It had one thermonuclear 1 megaton warhead that had radar decoys. Alternatively, a multiple re-entry vehicle (MRV), with three separate charges and decoys were also used. Two SS-11s were launched 5,715 miles fromo Tyuratam test site in Kazakstan into the Pacific on July 27 and 28, 1970. Two more were identified at the end of 6,525 mile flights with MRV warheads on August 21, 1970.

SS-13

The SS-13 Savage was probably the first large Soviet missile to use a solid propellant. Similar in size to the US Minuteman III, it had three stages linked by open girder framework. First operational in the late sixties, about 60 Savages entered service before further development was halted. It is known to carry multiple warheads, but it might have been deployed as a mobile missile system. Its length is 65 feet 7 inches, and its diameter is 5 feet 7 inches. Launch weight is 77,160 pounds, and range is 5,000 miles.

SS-17

The SS-17 first appeared in the early seventies with the SS-19, which is probably a competitive design. Developed as a replacement for the aging SS-11, it was installed in many former SS-11 silos. SS-17 is the first Soviet missile to employ "cold-launch ejection." This is a procedure in which the missile is ejected from its silo by powerful gas generator, and the first stage ignition is delayed until it is above ground. This eliminates blast damage to the silo and increases the range.

 

More

http://www.af.mil/lib/afissues/1999/posture/1_9.html

 


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