••1.'l~.wllll~'H UC"CI' "MJ..... ~·,.~i!J.•~wH""'''' ,.

... -_-..-

DEDICATION

THIS BOOK RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED TO:

GEN. OSMUND J. "OZZIE" RITLAND

Best Commander any of us ever had.

AND TO:

The men lost in experimental testing

The many more lost to rl;ldiation effects,

,Those now terminally ill

COVER PHOTO: Early (small) H-Bomb blast still in "expansion"phase. Note the "ice cap" starting to form at the top, signifying itsentry into the stratosphere.

A15304 173190

I,\

-Baker- shot in the Operation CROSSROADS test series in the Pacific 1946. 600 KT A-Bomb... The Big Ones were soon to follow...

LIVE NUCLEAR TEST SERIES:WHITE SANDS, NEW MEXICO

TRINITY 1945

NEVADA (Limit 60 Kilotons)

RANGER 1950BUSTER/JANGLE 1951TUMBLER/SNAPPER 1952UPSHOTIKNOTHOLE 1953TEAPOT 1955

PACIFIC

Story of the 4925th Test Group (Atomic)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:--Th Maj. Gen. Ritland for all the valuable

information he contributed.--Th all ofmy old 4925th buddies who dug deep

and sent me information and pictures.--Th Vic Tannehill and his Boomerang staffwho

helped me put this book together.

John D. (Doc) Hardison

All rights reserved. No part 01 this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrievalsystem or transmitted in any form by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying orotherwise, without lirst obtaining the written permission of the above copyright owner andpublisher.

CROSSROADS 1~46

SANDSTONE 1947GREENHOUSE 1951IVY 1952CASTLE 1954WIGWAM 1955REDWING 1956V1IA 1957(Very High Altitude)

UHA 1958(Ultra High Altitude)

After the Russian penetration of our Los Alamossecrets, the tests were expanded into a series of air drops,combined with "tower shots". This usually involved up to 14"bangs" in Nevada; slightly fewer in the Pacific.

Above-ground tests ended in 1958 with the NuclearTest Ban Treaty between the Soviet Union and the UnitedStates.

©BOOMERANG PUBLISHERS 19906164 Wesl83rd WayArvada, CO 80003(303) 423·5706

ISBN 0-9605900-4·8

Library of Congress Catalog Number 89-081893

Printed In the United States of America c' A:Jr:Ii 3

HISTORICAL DATA CREDITS:Atomic Energy Commission recordsAir Force Historical OfficeKirtland Air Force Base HistorianSurviving members of the 4925th

PHOTO CREDITS:Atomic Energy CommissionU. S. Air ForceMotion Picture Unit, Lookout MountainLaboratory, Hollywood, California4925th Photo Lab

J

4925th Photo Lab, EniwetokKirtland Air Force Base Photo Lab

FOREWORD

Never in a peacetime (non-combat)

operation have I seen such daily danger and

risks to Air Force personnel... or such highly

skilled and dedicated pilots, air crew,

ground support Airmen and Civilians.

My memories of these troops are proud

ones, indeed.

The research for this book has resulted in

a volume ofhistory that should be studied by

many people.

Gen. Osmund J. RitlandFebruary, 1988

Rancho Santa Fe, California

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PROLOGUE Page 6BEGINNINGS Page 7

THE MEN Pages 8-16

THE AIRCRATI Page 17-25

THE PRESSURE SUITS Page 26-27

THE AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY Page 28

THE TARGETS (AND TEST SITES) Page 29-32

THE BOMBS Page 33-35

THE HAZARDS Page 36-38

THE HUMOR Page 39

IN MEMORIAM Page 40

3 54083 OK MAIN: F-BKS17 OK 02/14/07 5021

PROLOGUE

During World War II, the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) had little to do with thedevelopment of the atomic bomb. Control had been placed in the hands of the Atomic EnergyCommission (AEC). All the Armed Forces maintained a close association with the AECthrough the Military Liaison Committee. The Armed Forces Special Weapons Project servedthe military departments jointly in atomic energy matters.

The world's first A-bomb was detonated July 16,1945, near Alamogordo, New Mexico, byManhattan Project scientists. It produced an explosion equal to that of 19,000 short tons(17,000 metric tons) of TNT. A few weeks later two USAAF B-29 Superfortresses helpedbring World War II to an end by dropping even more powerful atomic bombs on Hiroshimaand Nagasaki, Japan.

The USAAF's Strategic Air Command (SAC) was established March 21, 1946. Its missionwas to be prepared to conduct long-range operations to any part of the world at any time.Equipped in part with B-29s, its airmen were to be ready to deliver conventional or atomicbombs to any target assigned. They were America's main deterrent to aggression.

To strengthen the ability ofSAC to deliver atomic weapons, in 1946 the Air Staff directedthat all new bombers be able to carry atomic as well as high-explosive bombs. And SAC wasto integrate atomic weapons whenever and wherever possible in its training activities.

On September 18, 1947, by Act of Congress, the United States Air Force became anindependent service. A period ofreorganization followed as USAF leaders acted to structuretheir commands so as to best meet their assigned roles and missions in the national interest.

Air Staff officers were well aware of the need for specialized organizations to deal withatomic matters. Much had to be done before the Air Force could be ready to employ suchweapons on a large scale. In December, 1949, the Air Force set up its Special WeaponsCommand for the development and testing of atomic weapons at Kirtland Air Force Base,outside Albuquerque, New Mexico. This command would work closely with AEC's primecontractors--the Sandia Corporation and the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory.

President Harry S. Truman, in January, 1950, directed the AEC to emphasize itsthermonuclear research. The Air Force immediately began to make preparations fordelivering hydrogen bombs. There were two major problems in using such nuclear weapons:adapting various types of weapons carriers and bombs to each other; and, developingbombing techniques and systems that would be effective~ and yet permit the airplane andits crew to return from attacks safely. The first problem wa\ primarily aerodynamic, arisingas new bombers reached supersonic speeds. Working with AEC, the Air Force immediatelybegan Top Secret projects to overcome the difficulties of making thermonuclear weaponscompatible with delivery systems; and, to perfect techniques for dropping those weaponsfrom high and low altitudes while at the same time protecting airplane crews.

Victor C Tannehill, Publisher

BEGINNINGSIn February, 1950, a double barbed-wire complex was

set up within Kirtland AFB, Albuquerque, New Mexico, toheadquarter a new Top Secret U.S. Air Force unitdesignated the 4925th Test Group (Atomic). A small signat the gate simply said "Santa Fe Operations".Unauthorized, curious visitors were politely but firmlyturned away by armed USAF Air Policemen.

The best bomber and fighter pilots in the USAF andall types of expert support personnel were locatedworldwide and orders were promptly cut transferringthem to the elite 4925th.

A special search was made for the right man to leadthe outfit. Colonel OsmundJ. "Ozzie" Ritland was selectedas Commanding Officer. As a test pilot, he had 150aircraft to his credit, including all captured aircraft inWWII. He had a degree in engineering, and was an expertin logistics.

All aircraft then in the Air Force inventory andthought capable of nuclear weapons delivery were to beobtained and sent to the 4925th for testing. The SpecialWeapons Command, a major USAF Air Commandreporting only to the Pentagon and the AEC, set thewheels in motion to expedite this.

The 4925th was given this mission:1. ''Marry'' all nuclear weapon types to all

suitable types of aircraft.2. Establish the ballistics of each type

of nuclear weapon, on precision bomb ranges.3. Support the AEC with live test drops,

at Nevada and the Pacific.4. Fly through and "sample" the highly

radioactive nuclear "clouds" after the bangs.

ABOVE: Colonel "Ozzie" Ritland, Commander, 4925th

BELOW: Kirtland Air Force Base, Albuquerque, New Mexico (facingeast). Note the three large hangars and concrete ramp in center.This was "Area Charlie", with double barbed wire fences and guardtowers. Home base of the 4925th. Sandia Base complex inbackground.

\,~ ., ,.... , .

Page 6 THE MEGATON BLASTERS BEGINNINGS

\.

Page 7

THE MENWith top priority established, the 4925th was soon

staffed with highly experienced people. Bomber, fighter,and chopper pilots, triple-rated bombardiers(Bomb./Navigator/Radar), staffofficers, nuclear projectengineers (military and civilian), depot-levelmodification personnel, aerial cameramen, photo labtechnicians, bomb loading specialists, crew chiefs andcrews. Col. Ritland "welded" these pros into a highlysharp TEAM.

Ifthere was ever an ELITE out-fit, the 4925th was it.During its eleven years, the 4925th had many men

come and go, and many internal changes in jobassignments. The list below is a rough assessment.COMMANDERS:

Col. Ritland, Col. SamuelSTAFF AND SQUADRON COMMANDERS:

Col. Brick IrelandLt. Col. Carl OusleyLt. Col. Mario CicconeCol. Paul FacklerLt. Col. Gene CoxMaj. Fain PoolCol. Hank EichelLt. Col. Woody WoodwardMaj. Corky CorcoranCol. Jack AtkinsLt. Col. Ed HurleyCWO Van Vanlandingham

FLIGHT COMMANDERS:Maj. Dick PartrickMaj. Jerry BlanchardMaj. Marv SpeerMaj. John HardisonMaj. Geo. Gleason

d_

'''....,~,..., "'1:. t ..• "lJ'~t. .I't.. •

Page 8

ABOVE: Col. "Brick" Ireland, Deputy Commander

BELOW: Col. Ritland with B·45 drop crew. From left··Williams, Follensby, Stull, Lawton.

THE MEGATON BLASTERS

BOMBER PILOTS:B-36:

Gene CoxBill HickeyJohn HardisonFain Pool

B-52:Jerry BlanchardDave CrithlowCharlie Smith

B-47:Beck BecktellFrank EarlyHarvey GillNicholsDick PartrickMarv SpeerSteinkrausGrafStullBill YingerAck Zalk

B-45:Keith ConleyHank Yawn

B-501B-29:Fred ArmbrusterBucklesJack HammerIvan MahanDave Self

B-66:Hank Yawn

SAMPLER PILOTS:B-571B-29:Fred ArmbrusterMalcolm BoundsJim CornGeorge FettingerJohn HardisonLangdon HarrisonChappy MacDonald

HELICOPTER PILOTS:YH-19, YH-21:Bill GreenJim OzierPat Patterson

FIGHTER PILOTS:F-84, F-86, F-I01:George GleasonIra GraysonHank HenryNorm SchmidtEllingson

THE MEN

Lynn SteinerVollmer

BOMBARDIERS:George DunmoreDwight Durner

! Ike EichenbergJackie HarveyJesse HenryKen LawtonBill PayneDanny SchmuckerGeorge TrimbleBlake WhiteWoody Wilson

WEAPONERS:Earl Follensby

AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCEOFFICER:Rocky Rockaforte

BOMB LOADINGS:Van Vanlandingham

CHIEF OPERATIONSDISPATCHER:Red McLaughlin

PHOTO LAB COMPLEX:Jim McFaddenFrank HensleyJake Jaycox

AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY:Bob McCullough

. RADIATION SAFETYSECTION:Finis MitchellLloyd Stockton

CIVILIAN EXPERTS:Dave ChadwickHerman Miller (Sandia)Gar NunnHal Plank (AEC/Los Alamos)

CHIEF FLIGHT SURGEON:Karl Houghton (SWC)

FLIGHT ENGINEERS:Ben HarveyByron MillerRandall O'BryanRocky Roccaforte

Walt ToddJim PurcellRuegeseker

CREW CHIEFS:Jim AshRoy BedwellHugh BrownClem ByzenkiNorm HaagensonRoy HunterMerlin MartinScully ScalovinoEddy White

TECH REPS:Chris DollChuck HaywoodRoy Squyres

(We had about 16 ofthese...oneor two from each plant, plus aPratt & Whitney EXPERTon 24­hour call. TOP Pro's.)

PROJECT OFFICERS:Steve BartalskiCorky CorcoranOtis HillRay LynnJohn UmlaufBill Ward·

(These men were engineeringgrads, MIT, Cal-Tech, etc. Theyeach followed a certain bombthrough all phases of tests,including drops, as part offlightcrews.)

All 4925th personnel wererequired to have an AEC "Q"clearance... 15-year backgroundcheck by the FBI.

A special ADIZ (Air DefenseZone) was set up surroundingKirtland. A select squadron ofAir Defense Command fighterswas brought in to Kirtland. Theywere on 24-hour alert to enforcethe ADIZ, and they did so.

Page 9

ABOVE:FirstA-Bombair-dropinU.S....Pilot:Capt.JerryBlanchard, BELOW: Nevada B-36 drop crew, mid-1950s. From leil--Pool,far right; Col. Ritland second from left; Dr. Felts (AEC/Los Alamos), Hickey, Schroeder, Schmucker, Ward, Roccaforte, Harvey,third from left. B-29. unknown, Haagenson, Castleman, unknown.

Page 11

Lt. Col. ·Woody· Woodward, in charge of ·marrying· bombs toaircraft.

Major Marv Speer

THE MENTHE MEGATON BLASTERS

...r . _,. ..A56_~.~'~·

Page 10

Page 13

Captain -Big George- Trimble, Chief Test Bombardier. AeronauticalEngineering degree.

THE MEN

Major Jesse Henry, Chief Bombardier

THE MEGATON BLASTERS

BELOW: Early live drop crew--Pilot: Capt. Neal Barker (kneeling farright); Bombardier: Maj. Jesse Henry, second from left; Weaponeer:Capt. Follensby, third from left; and, Bombardier/Navigator/Timer:Lt. Col. Ed Hurley.--------..........

ABOVE: This shows the size of a B·36 propeller··19 feet, twostories. From left--Cox, Pool, Follensby, Eichenberg, Jack Harvey,Byron Miller, unknown, unknown, Martin (Crew Chief).

Page 12

BELOW: Pacific Test Site, Eniwetok Atoll, 1956, ·Osage Drop·,Operation REDW/NG. B-36. Front row: Pool, Roccaforte, Hardison,Barta/sky, Ben Harvey, Payne, unknown. Back row, from right: JackHarvey, Trimble.

ABOVE: Early pilots. From left--Corn (B-57), Buckles (B-29), Stull(B-45), Grayson (F-84), unknown, Conley (B-45), unknown.

Captain ·Rocky· Roccaforte, Chief Flight Engineer/Group AircraftMaintenance Officer.

Capt. Lynn Steiner

Page 14 THE MEGATON BLASTERS THE MEN Page 15

THE AIRCRAFT

CHASE PLANES:We used stripped-down,

modified T-33s for the 40,000 ft.drops, with aerial cameramen inrear seat, with hand-held moviecameras. At release, the T-birdwent into a screeching dive, doinga l.0ntinuous roll around thebomb, with the cameramenshooting through the top of thecanopy. The pull-out was made atthe last second. The new G-suitscame in handy. About half. thetime, two chase planes wererequired. This required all of theabove, plus maintainingseparation between the rollingaircraft and, of course, the bomb.

At higher altitudes, the single­seat fighters used advanced typegun cameras, mounted in the leftside of the cockpit, to shoot thebomb and its series of 'chutes.The camera was activated by thegun-switch on the pilot's controlstick. Watching two of thesepilots dive with a 43,000 lb.bomb, doing, at first, horizontalrolls around it, then into ascreeching dive, using dive­brakes as required, still doingrolls, maintaining perfectseparation...was really somethingto see. Real pro's.

CHOPPERS:Three beat-up YH-19s and two

new YH-21s. Weird birds, flownby weird pilots, on weird tests.

BELOW: Boeing B-29 Superfortress

FIGHTER AIRCRAFT:We started with beat-up F-84s

and F-86s. Then:F-84F: First four off the line.

Heavy modification by our own shop.The "F" bore no resemblance to theformer series.

F-86E: Max ceiling only 43,000 ft.Speed too slow for B-52s.

F·101A: Bingo. Mter take-off, outof sight in 14 seconds, in steepclimb. The B-36s and B-52s finallyhad company, at the prescribed50,000 feet.

F-I04 and F-I05: Supersonic. NOdata.

Unfortunately, most of these mendied from radiation cancer, or arenow terminally ill from same.

B-66: Ground lover, when loaded.Oxygen system problems. Twin jets,bomb bay too small.

B-52C: (Boeing) Four aircraft,modified for us at factory. Perfectbomber. Maximum airspeed 0.93mach. 8 big jets. Range: unlimited.(Air-to-air refueling =100,000Ibs. in14 minutes. Ceiling: Above 55,000ft.. Non-skid brakes, excellent airbrakes, plus landing chute.Computerized bomb/nav system,with doppler. Cross-wind landinggear. 10,000 lbs. pure-pure water,for water-injection take-offs. (Waterlasted 110 seconds.) Astro compass.Seat ejection. Pilot's checklist = 60pages.

NOTE: We were geared up toreceive the first four B-58s when thetest ban cancelled the program.

TEST AIRCRAFT:B-29, B-36H, B-45, B-47, B-50D,

B-52C, B-57, B-66, F-84F, F-86D,F-101A, F-104, F-105, YH-19, YH­21, C-47, T-33. (Plus: F-86E, F­86G)

All aircraft were "Feather­weighted"...stripped of everythingthat could be safely removed (guns,blisters, latrines; each B-36 hadtwo, etc.).

B-29s: Four of the best we couldfind. I flew B-29 #818 on one testto 42,500 ft., with Ben Harveychasing runaway props like mad.

B-50Ds: (4). Cadillac version ofB-29. Boeing. 28-cylinder engines,steerable nose wheel., reversibleprops, water injection.

B-36H: (4) 320 knots at 50,000ft., with a 43,000 lb. bomb load.Ten engines; six 28-cylinder recips,four J -47 jets. 19-foot propellers,automatically synchronized,reversible. 3,200 horse-power (wet).Wing-span: 230 ft. Length: 151 ft.Range: 24 hours. Max fuelcapacity: 33,626 gallons.

B-45: (North American) We gotthe first four produced; 0001through 0004. The only 4-jet U.S.bomber. No approach drogue chutenor air-brakes. With power at idle,glided like a sail plane. Bomb baytoo small for H-bombs.

B-47: (Boeing) Four aircraft,modified at factory for 4925th. Sixjets, approach drogue chute,landing chute. Mostaerodynamically streamlinedbomber yet.

B-57: (Bomber version) Rotatablebomb racks. Twin jets. SWEET tofly. Bomb bay too small. (Samplerversion) Pilot and RadiationOfficer. Equipped for samplingradiation-hot nuclear "clouds"shortly after the blasts.

We started with a few B-29sand B-50s, but quickly expanded tofactory delivery of the first (orlatest) production types.

BELOW: Capt. "Folly" Follensby, Chief Weaponeer Officer.

ABOVE: From left--Bill Ward, Nuclear Projects Officer; EarlFollensby, Pilot and Chief Weaponeer Officer; Jim McFadden, Pilotand Chief of Photo Lab.

Page 16 THE MEGATON BLASTERS THE AIRCRAFT Page 17

BELOW: B·36H over Convair Ft. Worth factory. Our version wasstripped and feather-weighted, plus many modifications at 4925th.

ABOVE: B-36H. The four jets out on the wings not shown.

~jij

II

BELOW: Convair B·36 PeacemakerABOVE: Boeing B-50D Superfortress

Page 18 THE MEGATON BLASTERS THE AIRCRAFT Page 19

BELOW: Boeing B-47B taking off at Muroc Dry Lake with 55,000­pound H-Bomb shape for drop on Edwards Precision Bomb Range.Pilot: Jerry Blanchard. Modifiedbomb bayanddual-boostedelevatorcontrol system. Nine powerful JATO bottles on each side of fuselagefor extra takeoff thrust. Project CAUCASIAN.

ABOVE: B-45. North American. We got the first four from the factory,0001 through 0004. Factory Tech Rep was the famous Chris 001/.Modified with special Norden bombsights for Nevada live drops.

11/

BELOW: B-45 starting a live bomb run at Nevada Test Site.

ABOVE: B-36. "Barney" Pool landing with a "hot" weapon, NO.5feathered and NO.4 jet shut down. 1958. This was toward the end ofthe usefulness of8-36s. We were deep into B-52s andgearing up forthe first four production line B-58s.

Page 20 THE MEGATON BLASTERS THE AIRCRAFT Page 21

8-57 on special mission near Edwards AF8.

8-57. 80mber version. Modified from 8ritish Canberra. Sweet bird to fly. Rotating bomb bay system. 80mb bay too small for our stuff.The sampler version was used extensively. Jerry Blanchard scared the daylights outta me doing barrel-rolls in this thing. (8-365 weresorta limited in aerobatics.)

One of the first Douglas 8-66s. 80mb bay too small and underpowered for our work. Oxygen system problems. (We lost one man.)

Page 23

8-52C. Third 8-52 delivered to the Air Force. Quickly followed by three more.

THE AIRCRAFTTHE MEGATON BLASTERSPage 22

~."""'.'""'.-.-

One of our F-101As taxiing into 4925th Restricted Area with landing drag-'chute. Twin-jet Voodoo.

YH-19. Used for many AEC tests at Salton Sea and after-dropping missions in Nevada.

F-84G. Republic. Drop and chase missions.

F-86E. Replaced later by Gs. LA8S bomb-testing and photo-chase for 8-36s up to 43,000 feet only. Too slow for 8-52s.

Page 24 THE MEGATON BLASTERSPage 25

T-33. Lockheed.. Chase plane. Photo workhorse for 4925th.THE AIRCRAFT

"-u. S. AIR FORCE

1272~~ Id 2 "":"' .

FU-7"...."•~,.••

Page 27THE PRESSURE SUITS

BELOW: The most uncomfortablebridge game in history. When a last­minute takeoff delay occurred, itwasn't worth it to un-suit.

RIGHT: From left--Conley, JerryBlanchard, Durner.

THE MEGATON BLASTERS

::

r a·4~:JI STRATO'-'ET \I = /JO£ING= \

I ~{&fIi< Cl"a~ \-- - -- ---_J

._~~~

Page 26

RIGHT: Harvey Gill

Decompression at 50,000 feet or above causes the bloodto "boil", and sudden and painful expansion ofany"gas" inyour system, followed rapidly by unconsciousness and theloss of the crew and aircraft. The pressure suits designedto prevent this were the tightest fitting monstrosities everendured by man. Even without inflation, they causedwelts and bruises. Each of us required two helpers, to getinto these things. Two fittings were required, at Wright­Patterson, followed by a trip to 65,000 feet in the AltitudeChamber; then a sudden decompression to zero altitude.A high-pressure oxygen bottle strapped to your leginflated the suit to almost unbearable pressure. Thepressure caused us to breathe backwards. Relax, foroxygen to enter lungs, then force it out

No flight simulators were available in those days totest the real problem: ability to control the aircraft, underthose conditions. (See following photos.)

BELOW: Keith Conley, with face mask in place. Suit is not inflated.Two assistants were required to get into these monstrosities,especially the sealed helmets. Note high-pressure oxygen bottle andregulator tied to leg. When activated, high-pressure oxygen inflatedthe tubes and tightened the already skin-tight suit to screamingtight! Aftera few hands were almost lost, special gloves were added.Inflatable. Special paratrooper boots were also added. Breathingwas reversed: relax to let high-pressure 100% oxygen IN, then forceit OUT. Suit, even un-inflated, caused many welts and bruises eachtime it was worn. In a 140-degree cockpit, pilots became soakingwet, lost up to five pounds and became partially dehydrated.

THE PRESSURE SUITS

THE AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY THE TARGETS (AND TEST SITES)

Aft section of the battery of super-high speed cameras used for aerial photography of all nuclear drops and shots. C-47.

The shots and drops were covered by a wild bunch of100% PROs from the 1st Air Force Motion Picture Unit,Lookout Mountain, Hollywood, California. Pilot: Capt.Pat Wilson, in a beatup old C-47 with no cargo doors (seephoto).

Funded by AEC, this outfit had the latest and best ofcameras, still and motion picture. Fitted with super­sized reels, the cameras were set up in banks. They couldshoot 2,400 frames per second...each camera auto­started to follow the previous one, with continuouscoverage. Shooting a brightness that can damage the

Page 28

human eye, but fades rapidly, is not a job foramateurs.

On the ground, these guys would clamp acamera on a tripod onto the top of a car, and,driving at full throttle just to the left of ourprops, they would photograph our takeoffs.

Once, when trying to set a B-36 down on thefirst few feet of the short runway at Eniwetok, Ispotted--at the last minute--this crazy cameracrew in the center of the near end of the strip,merrily cranking away!

THE MEGATON BLASTERS

NUCLEAR LIVE DROPS:AEC Nevada Test complexAEC Pacific Test complex

BALLISTIC DROPS:Edwards AFB Precision Bomb

RangeAEC Salton Sea Precision Bomb

RangeLABS Bomb Range

(near Edwards)

OTHER DROPS:Navy Auxiliary Air Station Bomb

Range, EI Centro, CAWhite Sands Test complex, N.M.Tonapah Bomb RangeSalt Lake, UtahGulf of Mexico (using Tyndall

AFB, FL, as base)Northwestern Michigan (near

Canadian border)Kirtland AFB Practice Bomb

Range

OTHER TESTS:Indian Springs Test Base, NevadaCape Canaveral, FloridaHoward Hughes Radar Range,

near Los AngelesGrey AFB, Texas

NIGHT DROPS:AEC Nevada Test Complex

AEC NEVADA TESTCOMPLEXAt Nevada, air-drops and tower

shots were limited to 60 KT.(60,000 tons of TNT-equivalent).The early bangs were oftenfreaky. With perfect stratosphericconditions, a large bang couldbreak only a few windows, in LasVegas. The following week, asmall bang might break MANYplate-glass windows, and jar thedaylights out of Indian Springs(our advance base). Yearly testseries usually consisted of about14 detonations during a 90-dayperiod.

Tower shots: Contrary to media

THE TARGETS (AND TEST SITES)

reports,these were not DROPPED.They were "triggered" by remotecontrol. Purpose: At detonation,things happen in a MILLIONTH ofa second. Super-speed cameras,shooting thousands of frames persecond, could be "at speed"EXACTLY at bang time. (Banks ofcamera units.) On air drops, thebest we could promise was +/- 2seconds, and 110 feet from theexact center of a 1,000 ft. target.Also, tower shots were used forblast damage effects (buildings,aircraft, etc., at spaced distances).More on Nevada, in the INDIANSPRINGS section.

But, before I leave Nevada, oneinteresting drop: For some reason,the Los Alamos Phd's wished adetonation at 40,000 feet. Only10,000 feet beneath the dropaircraft (B-36). Our B-47s wererequired to layout smoke trails, at40,000 feet, immediately prior tothe drop. They were not allowedUNDER the drop aircraft, so had tofly in at an angle. (Smoke trails tomeasure the shock waves of thebang.) After a few practice runs, itwent off perfectly. The media wentape. For you old-time Las Vegaspeople: Now you know.

AEC PACIFIC TEST COMPLEXAll H-bombs and high-yield A­

bombs were tested in the Pacific.(Mostly in the Eniwetok/BikiniAtoll area.) Eniwetok had a veryshort runway. If you landed short,you hit a vertical concreteembankment. Face-to-face. (A C­124 Globemaster did this.) If youlanded long, forget it. Quickly.Bend the throttles forward, andmake a "go-around". On take-off,the GO-NO-GO decision point waswhen you released your brakes.Even PARKING space, for a B-36 orB-52, was a major problem. Theonly good thing about Eniwetokwas the stops at Honolulu.

The closest I can come to

describing a Megaton BlastHydrogen Bomb is AWESOME.UNBELIEVABLE.

Yet, they produced more vividcolors than any human has everpainted, all boiling around.

In the eleven-year history ofthe 4925th, only ONE drop errorwas made. Incorrect data wascranked into the memory bank ofa B-52 bomb system. The wrongcomplex of islands disappeared.This upset a few people. In veryhigh places. Barney Pool and Iwere scheduled for the followingdrop, with the youngestbombardier of the outfit (Lt.Jackie Harvey). We were spokenat.

After many practice runs,Jackie dropped the one and only100% "Shack" in the history ofnuclear drops. (Exact center ofground-zero.) The "Timer", alsoa freckled-faced triple-ratedbomb/nav type, came up with adetonation within TWO seconds.Lt. Bill Payne. After the drop,General "Black-Jack" Samuel,Task Force Commander andformer Commander of the4925th, gave us the Officer'sClub.

BALLISTIC DROPS:Edwards Precision Bomb

RangeExperts were transferred

from the famous AberdeenProving Grounds. With the mostadvanced triangular optics andtelemetry, they recorded theexact ballistics of each drop."Ballistic" bombs wereduplicates ofthe real thing, withtelemetry, other gadgets, andlots of concrete. On free-falldrops, they penetrated as deepas 65 feet. When a 43,000 poundobject hits the ground, from50,000 feet, everyone in thecounty feels it.

Page 29

Salton Sea Precision BombRange. (AEC) Near Thermal,CA.

Target: 40-ft. square raft, incenter ofthe lake. At 50,000 feet,this raft looked like a pin-point.Top-notch ballistics crew, headedby Warren Austin, with a bomb­run communication genius knownonly as Elmo. I watched Elmo inaction one day, during a typical50,000 ft. drop. He watched thedrop aircraft's progress on anelaborate table console, andmaintained communications withfour ground points and the pilot,with a five-mike-button hand­held deal that he had made. Theonly lingo I could understand waswhen he talked to the pilot,bombardier, or weaponeer.

Again, when a 43,000 poundbomb, even though a "Dummy",hits the surface...even if thatsurface is WATER. ..it can beheard for miles...and the shockwaves trav,el fast and far, throughthe, water.

Shortly after we got into H­bombs, we tested "Evasive"tactics, to prevent the crew andaircraft from being blown up bythe bomb. With a B-36, we workedit out a 51 degree turn, through120 degrees, at max speed. Thatwasn't enough, so drag 'chuteswere placed in the rear of thebombs. A series of chutes. Eachchute pulled out a larger chute.The final chute was the largest inthe world. This caused ballisticaccuracy problems, so estimatedwinds, at each 5,000 foot level,were cranked in. With an H-bomb,accuracy is really not important,so it worked out A-OK. Anyhow,now· you Thermal, ·Californiapeople know.

LABS BOMB RANGE (NearEdwards)

... (See full LABS story later.) .

OTHER DROPS:Gulf of Mexico

In the early days (late 1940s)

Page 30

we needed to test different types ofH.E. (High Explosives), in differentconfigurations. (H.E. was used totrigger the A-bomb.) Differenttypes. of bomb casings had to betested. Our B-29s dropped these inthe Gulf, using Tyndall AFB,Florida, as base. The local nativesdidn't care for this. Not havingmuch "protection" in those days, wewere chased out, and told to neverreturn. We moved this operation to:

Northwestern Michigan:(Near the Canadian border.) We

completed the tests just in time.The natives THERE didn't like iteither, and chased us out. But wegot our water and ground surfaceimpact data, etc.

Salt Lake, Utah:We were more careful. We

dropped thousands ofpellets in theLake from B-50s, with takeoffs andlandi~gs at Kirtland only. HillAFB, near Salt Lake City, wasscreamed at.

White Sands Test Complex, NewMexico:Radar "confusion test drops". I

flew some of these (B-36), with (54)500 lb. bombs, dropped in clusters,with one 18,000 lb. Mark XVIdropped about in the middle of thebomb run. Other tests here, but nodata. I remember that the BaseEngineer at White Sands roaredabout my B-36 cracking hisconcrete ramps. But we hadprotection by this time, so he wasignored.

Navy Aux Air Station BombRange, EI Centro, California:

B-36 drops. Swarms of Navycarrier pilots making head-onpasses. Weird radio frequencies."Tower, get these guys OFFme!" ...Many missions, testing thefirst drag-'chutes for H-bombs.Drop altitude too low for chaseplanes. Many problems with thesefirst 'chutes. CWO James headed awild bunch of parachutists here,

that tested new parachutes forair crews. He was pleading tohave his men jump from a B-36.I made a deal with him. Thejumps, if they would photo thebomb-'chutes during drops. Thewheels back home LOVED thesephotos, until they learned theywere take by PARACHUTISTS.One photo showed a parachutist,on the other side of the bomb­chute, free-falling, with acamera aimed at the bomb­chute. This was ceased,immediately.

KIRTLAND PRACTICEBOMB RANGE:

Used for practice bombing,and classified canister drops.

TONAPAH BOMB RANGE:Set up as I left the 4925th. No

data.

OTHER TEST SITES:Indian Springs, Nevada:

Sort of a "hell hole", in thedesert, on the edge of the droparea. Almost every year, for 90days, the 4925th based allsupport-test aircraft here,including the "Command"aircraft for AEC people (B-50),sampler aircraft (B-29s), long­range "Cloud" trackers (B-50sand crews borrowed from theHurricane Hunter WeatherSquadrons), short-rangetrackers (C-47s), Aerial Photoaircraft, after-drop choppers,security patrol aircraft, etc. Ihad the misfortune of runningthis operation during theTumbler/Snapper series oftests,plus alternating between flyingthe AEC Command aircraft andB-29 samplers. Plus keepingcivilian scientists from walkinginto running props, losingparachutes, etc. Each nuclearshot had a countdown. Delayscould be caused by many things.When "X" number of delays andcancelled countdowns occurred,I would call Col. Paul Fackler,

THE MEGATON BLASTERS

4925th Coordinator at CampMercury. "Sir, request permissionto send these keyed-up guys intoLas Vegas for 24 hours."..."Fine,I'll JOIN you'" And everythingwould shut down.

In the Command aircraft, wetested different anti-flash­blindness systems, supervised byour chief Flight Surgeon. Weusually positioned the aircraft at12,000 feet, 15 miles from groundzero. Mter the chief Los Alamosscientist aboard viewed the blast,we climbed at full power,observing the rapidly rising cloud,and radioed the sampler aircraftas to when to begin penetration.Reliable radiation film badgeswere not yet developed, so all ofus wore several types, plusradiation dosimeters. Reliablecleaning methods for exposedflight suits were tested by using adifferent detergent in washingmachines after each mission. Tidewon.

Sampling missions could gethairy. The T-19 Radiation Meterwas a highly advanced version ofa geiger counter. It had fourscales. The fourth scale respondedonly to very high radiation. In onecloud, my Radiation Officer yelled"I'm pegged out at max, on scalefour. Let's get OUTTA here."Fastest 180 degree turn I evermade. Entire crew grounded fromsampler missions for one year.

Before that, I was asked to getsamples of the "Tail" of a blast.This is the dirt that is suckedupwards after the blast. Very"dirty", radiation-wise. It startsupward slower than the cloud, atfirst but retains its heat longer, sorapidly gets above the cloud.Faint orange in color, anddifficult to spot. We spotted itabove us, when we reached 40,000feet and sampled it at 42,500 feet,which I hereby claim as a recordfor B-29s, with Ben Harvey, bestFlight Engineer ever, getting thecredit. (Chasing runaway propslike mad.)

THE TARGETS (AND TEST SITES)

The trackers flew under thecloud, measuringfall-out radiation.A squadron of SAC F-84s once flewin to practice flying through theclouds. This remains a mystery tome, 'til this day.

CAPE CANAVERAL:The vertical tail sections of a B­

36 is as large as a big barn door.Two of our birds had large multi­colored "doughnuts" painted oneach side. We flew to CapeCanaveral (now Kennedy SpaceCenter) and flew high altitudeholding patterns for 8 hours, andreturned to Kirtland. The spacepeople tracked the doughnuts todetermine which optics to use, fortracking space shots. Weirdestlooking B-36s ever.

HOWARD HUGHES RADARRANGE:B-50s. 8 hours per day, at 30,000

ft., in radar pattern. Based at LAX.Deluxe pool-side motel rooms,ETC., furnished by Howard. Withme at Indian Springs.

GREY AFB, TEXAS:B-29s. y.le were required to land

after dark, and were to leave thearea immediately. Take off beforedaylight. No data.

NIGHT DROPS:B-36s, with 43,000 lb. Mark

XIV's. Target, Frenchman Flats,Nevada Test Complex. Bomb casingcovered with many multi-coloredhigh-wattage light bulbs*. 45,000feet. This was when I learned tonever let the co-pilot TOUCH thejet throttles after he got them on100%. The jets ran on the sameaviation fuel as the recips, and atabove 40,000 ft., would flame outfor good, if you touched a throttle.(Co-pilot "adjusted" number 4 jet,and lost it, causing us to cancel thedrop and go home...all four jetswere needed to maintain bomb-runspeed.)

* This was during the UFO scare

period. MANY phone calls. (LasVegas: Now you know.) All ofthese drops were made at 4:00a.m. We were never briefed on thepurpose.

MISCELLANEOUS:One B-36 was kept busy

delivering and picking up eachtype of H-bomb (training types)to many places, all, over theStates...SAC bases, Denver, etc.Loring AFB, northern Maine,taxiing on ice...Rome, northernNew York, in snowstorms...Roswell, New Mexico, insand storms...North Dakota, insnow AND ice. Denver (Lowry)hated us, even after westraightened them out. They hadto re-shuffle many parkedaircraft, each time, for the B-36..One week's notice required.They finally built a specialbuilding, in a remote section ofthe base, which required us toBACK the B-36 out, (propsreversed) in a 180 degree turn.(Tow-bars could not be carriedWITH H-bombs...no space.)

LOW ALTITUDE BOMBSYSTEM (LABS)

(See accompanyingsketches...NOT TO SCALE.)

Toss-bombing was notnew...but the 4925th fighter-testpilots developed it into an ART.Problem: Delivery withoutblowing up the fighter. Thesystem first tested was a highlyadvanced type of toss-bombing,with a twist. The fighterapproached the target at a max,precise speed, on-the-deck, on aprecise course, using groundcheck-points. At "X" check-point, .pilot pulled up to a precise angleof climb, at a precise G-force,released the bomb, andcontinued into an Immelmanturn, diving to the deck at maxspeed in the opposite direction.The stream-lined 750 lb. MarkVII would travel MILES to thetarget. Our top fighter pilots,

Page 31

....-~.... ,

~

Page 33

ABOVE: Mark XVII Hydrogen Bomb. The Mark XIV ballisticswere poor. Too much wobble. Result: Mark XVII. Lengthened to24 feet, with larger fins and "buffer· rings. Weighed 43,400pounds. Megatons blast. Aft section crammed with a series ofdrag 'chutes, each pulling outa larger 'chute... to provide betterevasive tactics byaircrew.

BELOW: Nevada. AEC Test Control Site. This is one of thecontrol boards used to track drop aircraft and up to 40 test­support aircraft.

lot of natives in Hawaii. This was named the VHASHOT (Very High Altitude). Fain Pool circled thearea at 40,000 feet in a B-36 "flying photo lab".

After the complaints rolled in from Hawaii, the1958 stratosphere shot was moved deeper into thePacific. UHS SHOT (Ultra High Altitude). H-bomblifted to 250,000 feet by balloons. The official yieldsof all H-bomb test drops are still classified. (TheUHA shot was circled by Bill Hickey and crew usingthe same B-36 loaded with cameras.)

The "Balloon-busting" shot was at the end of the4925th's operations. Above-ground testing wasbanned by a treaty between the U.S. and Russia.

:I:~ ~-=:.:" ". _._" ~

::-'~~~"..•...... ,..f.~...,,~:,,\,";"'!.:;"~ ,:j~.•.'~'~:'"'~'.".,.. ,.,"~ .,.,-- , "

THE BOMBS

THE BOMBSThe Los Alamos physicists, now in a race with

Russia, performed unheard offeats. They increasedin "yield" of the peanut bombs dropped on Japanfrom 20 KT to 600 KT, without appreciablyincreasing the size and weight (Mark VI). 600 KT =600,000 tons of TNT (equivalent).

Experts then designed the Mark VII, the mostballistically perfect bomb on record. Weighing only750 pounds, tear-drop shaped, with perfect fins, thisput the fighter pilots in business. The Navy took onelook and moved carrier aircraft in, next door to us.The army tried to push through a super "Big-Bertha"CANNON, for super SMALL A-bombs.

Before we solved all the A-bomb problems, the H­bombs arrived. These used an A-bomb just to triggerthe hydrogen bomb section. All in the samebombcasing, which made them long, big and heavy.The first one weighed 55,000 pounds. We modifiedthe bomb bay ofa B-47 and used the 13-mile runwayat Edwards, with 18 JATO bottles, to get this beastinto the air.

Many more versions of the H-bomb were tested,ranging from over 43,000 pounds down to 18,000.Eventually in the 1960s Los Alamos reduced the sizeand weight to a reported 20,000 pounds...with B-52shauling four at a time. 20 megatons each. 20 MT isequivalent to 20 million tons ofTNT.

The Nevada site was restricted to 60 KT. Thehighest we dropped was 43 KT. Los Alamosnecessarily experimented with different"ingredients". Some bombs fizzled and some went offwith a bang up to twice that expected. Gene Cox andFain "Barney" Pool flew a B-36 drop that wassupposed to be 23 KT. It banged out at 43 KT,bouncing the aircraft three times. ALL dropsresulted in two moderate-to-severe "bumps" as theprimary shock wave hit the aircraft and then theground-surface-reflected shock wave. This time, thethird shock wave was reflected from nearbymountains and was totally unexpected. Dropaltitudes were increased.

The ballistics of each version of all bombs wasestablished by dropping them on the Precision BombRanges at Edwards and the AEC Salton Sea complex(see "TARGETS"). This involved many drops for eachtype of bomb at altitudes of 40,000 feet to 50,000feet.

We flew back to Eniwetok Atoll, in the Pacific, forA-bombs exceeding 60 KT, and all H-bomb drops.

In 1957, the AEC decided to detonate an H-bombin the stratosphere, boosted to 150,000 feet by aRedstone missile fired from J ohnnston Island, 650miles from Hawaii. The resultant bang terrorized a

c=.LJ

- -......."-

\ ,

THE MEGATON BLASTERS

ttt //,/I II I1\ /.1\ /1"\ /.I. \ //l' ...)------

-~--""""'J;; '~-..

TOSS BOMBING SYSTEM

VERTICAL LOOP SYSTEM

//;'

---- -,/

II

II

I

~

"- ....."-,

"-

""-'\

/ "-I 'I '\

I '\, , ,.'- .....

,/ ~'~I '\

tlJ '~

Nevada, 1953. 15 KT tower shot during Operation UPSHOT/KNOTHOLE.

Page 32

such as George "Wrinkle-Belly"Gleason, Milburn "Hank" Henry,and Lynn Steiner, could put theMark VII down a smoke-stack.The arrival of the F-101A"Voodoo" made the newlydesigned Mark VII a formidablepin-point weapon, with minimumblast risk to aircraft or pilot.

Further testing of otherdelivery systems resulted in theVertical/Loop system. Sameapproach, but the pilot pulledstraight up, over the target,released the bomb, and finished ahigh-G loop, diving for the deck atmax speed in the originaldirection. Throttles bent forward.The bomb went miles high, andthen fell on the target. Highdegree of accuracy. Both thesesystems were really something towatch. A special bomb-sight wasdeveloped later. TheVertical/Loop system reducedblast risk to zero. To the pilot.

Nevada. Small air burst. Vertical smoke flares were shot just prior to blast for technical measurements, etc. Note absence of "tai/".

Nevada, 1953. Small (Hiroshima) A-Bomb. Note shock wave traveling rapidly toward you, on ground. The black part is mostly earth,very "dirty" with radioactivity. Even these small ones rose rapidly to 50,000 feet. Very difficult to sample.

Nevada, 1953. Multi-experimental tower shot. Photos were studiedcloselyby Los Alamos, in addition to the radiation particles gatheredby the sampler filters on penetrating aircraft and by many recording devices. About 20 KT.

Page 35THE BOMBS

Rare sequence shots. Second photo taken a split-second after the first one. Pat Wilson and the "Hollywood Gang" camera crew.

Page 34 THE MEGATON BLASTERS

8-29 nuclear cloud sampler. Note sample filter "box" on top of aft fuselage. Four of these were carried. Aircraft and crew were sentthrough radiation- "hot" nuclearclouds repeatedly. Slow speedof8-29 meantmaximum exposure for entire aircrew. Why drone aircraftwere not used remains a mystery.

Page 37THE HAZARDS

Radiation check ofsampler 8-29. Indian Springs, Nevada. T-19 radiation meter (NO probe!). Note airmen are wearing NORMAL flight­line fatigues with COTTON gloves.

Ground crewman is almost UNDER the "hot" engine with residue splashing on him. A fire truck couldeasilyhave done this, from a safedistance and with far better results.

THE MEGATON BLASTERS

national security. BUT! In "Target Nevada", anAEC/Air Force film released in the 1950s, you seeground crewmen spraying nuclear "hot" aircraft withhoses. In deep tones, the narrator says, "These men,wearing SPECIAL clothing, make these aircraft safeto fly within 24 hours!" (BULL!) How about the menwho had to change plugs, etc., on the engines?MONTHS later, the civilians at McClelland Depotrefused to TOUCH these engines. They were still so"hot" that probe-type geiger-counters went crazy.Why weren't fire trucks with remote-controllednozzles used to hose the aircraft down?

Reports came in early about sheep downwind fromthe Nevada blasts changing color and getting sick.Why weren't the tests immediately moved to thePacific? The many details of nuclear radiationdeaths and terminal illnesses are now beingrecorded by Dr. Legarreta, Ph.D., formerly on theManhattan Project, and the staffofNARS (NationalAssociation of Nuclear Survivors), 942 MarketStreet, Suite 710, San Francisco, California 94102.

The following photos, with captioned comments,speak for themselves.

Page 36

1. Years of almost daily handling and loadingexperimental A-bombs and H-bombs

2. into experimentally modified bomb bay racks3. to be flown in experimentally modified high­

performance aircraft4. at altitudes often much higher than the designed

ceiling, which caused5. decompression risks and oxygen risks.We lost several men in loading deals and from

oxygen problems in a new type aircraft. A full B-47crew, when the left JATO bottles failed, etc., etc.

But, as it turned out, our greatest hazard wasnuclear radiation. At last count (1985), seventy­three 4925th men were dead, most from radiationcancer. Many more are now terminally ill, mostlyfrom bone cancer. Exposure to nuclear radiation canresult in death from 24 hours to 50 years.

THE HAZARDS

UNTOLD UNTIL NOW:"Drone" aircraft were easily available for all cloud

sampling. The AEC had studied the effects in Japanfor over two years ...so why? To make matters worse,the. SAME crews were sent through the cloudsrepeatedly. True, the tests were of utmostimportance to our

THE HUMOR

Page 39

B-36, in restricted air space. The biggest thinghe ever saw dropped just in front of his NOSE.KNOWING that nuclear boom-booms were flownfrom Kirtland, he figured he was D-E-A-D. Whenhis knees stopped shaking, two days later, andhe got his voice back, he called all TV and radiostations in Albuquerque. Headline news. (Note:That was about 1954. In 1987, the mediascreamed that a "deep secret" had been uncoveredthrough the Freedom of Information law anddescribed the incident...also leaving theimpression that WE accidentally dropped it. Nowyou know.

In the early days, a MONKEY was strappedinto an ancient P-47 and remote-flown throughan atomic cloud. We pilots caught hell. Amateurcartoonists sprang up from all directions.

492,S ,- ....

THE HUMOR

All outfits have a few amateur pranksters. The 4925thhad EXPERTS. Most of what they did can't be printed,but here's a few.

Also, many things that happened were serious, at theTIME, but became sort ofhumorous later. Like the timeyou broke your collar bone falling from a tree stealingold man Pritchard's apples.

Enroute to our drop-test targets there's a very largemeteorite crater in Arizona. New bombardiers werecautioned, "Never fool around with the special gadgetson this bomb-control panel like ONE guy did!" (As the500 foot wide crater was pointed out).

One of our early jobs was to teach SAC crews how toload H-bombs. SAC B-36 takes off. We'll never know whybut the H-bomb DROPPED at about 1,500 feet altitudeafter take-off. Meanwhile, a civilian pilot in a little PiperCub was putt-puttingalong at 500 feet, UNDER the SAC

"They told me this would be good duty. I just flew 20 sampling missions, then lost three engines at 50,000 feet, decompressed, andlanded in azero/zero sand storm with ahot weapon, NO.6 on fire and both radios out... on my 25th birthday!"

THE MEGATON BLASTERS

T-33 sampler. Pilot and Radiation Officer with T·19 four-scale meter. After most of the 8-29 sampler crews had been grounded fromflying further sampling missions because they had taken excessive dosage, T-birds were FINALLY used. Note sampler intake on wingtiptank. Radioactive particles of the nuclear cloud were sent to Los Alamos where they were analyzed to determine the "yield" of theweapon.

;'4

T-33 sampler. Forward section of tip tanks contained sampler filters.

Page 38

IN MEMORIAM...Watson Armbruster IICharles B. AufillCarl AusfahlNeal F. BarkerHenry C. BartelsGeorge H. BennettDonald M.BennieClaude E. BlackmoreRichard J. BloemkerRichard BrownleeGuy BryantEdward F. ByersFrancis B. CarlsonKenneth C. CaseyJames CauseyJohn S. ChernoskiL. B. ChristensenMario A CicconeThomas V. CroninGeorge DietzHarry L. DonichtMac M. DunnFrank EarlyRobert L. EdmanQuentin L. EdmanPaul EichenbergElsie O. EllingsonBarry R. EmrickPaul FacklerPat FlemingEladio A GarciaC. J. GilmoreMack A GoddardGeorge W. GleasonKenneth H. GoogeJack GriffinWarren W. HarrisJackie HarveyRussell E. HightowerToy L. HunterRichard J. HynesTine W. KarrRobert M. KnightRobert W. KnoxRorex LacewellAuthur P. LaceyJohn S. LaRoweKen LawtonChester C. LoweRobert L. LundinLuther G. MarcumOrval MartenRichard J. Meechan

Page 40

James L. MeldonHerman MillerGeorge MorrisJules MosowCharles E. NeidermanBernard OlislagerMarvin W. OlsonJim OzierLou PantherRon ParnellDick PartrickHugh PendletonJames B. PurcellJames H. RaddinMark K RoweRay RothTom SalterErnie SaltzmanJoseph N. SchmalzelNorm SchmidtEdgar A SchmuckDanny SchmuckerWayne SchroederMarv SpeerVern SteadmanGene R. SwantChester F. ThewMorris J. WashatkaAllen W. WittHenry WortmanMary YoungAck Zalk

THE MEGATON BLASTERS

i .

/

UERQUE JOURNAL

crSpeaking of the pro~ t

Kirtland this week Brig. Gen.William M. Canterbury said,'With the continuing emphasison atomic weapons, our job hereat the Special Weapons Center I

.of asuring that new atomic wea-lpons and new plnaes are proper­ly matched becomes ever moreimportant."

The general also said, "It isthe men and women of ARD,Cwe should salute on this fifthanniversary. They are doing amagnificent job in making thiscountry a world leader in mod­ern air-power for peace."Rapid Growth

In five years ARDe has grofrom a puny force of 43 officersairmen land civilians to a grooof 40,000 'scattered through 10bases and 26 field stations allthe way from Japan to Europe.. During the fiscal year 1954,$350 million was budgeted forresearoh and development alone.Contracts were awarded to 160colleges, universities' and othernon-profit institutions and 1520­industrial companies. ARDC av­erages 5000 contracts each yeaT.

Air Force observers have cred­ited the ARDC with substantialprogress toward eliminating ma­or defects that threatened theair arm with "technical s,tagna­tion." They claim fur:ther til

Today marks the fifth lanni­versary of the Air Researchand Development Command ­which is represented in NewMexico by the Special WeapoCenter 'at Kirtland Air ~ rceBase and at the Holloman Air

velopment Center 'at Alamo­gordo.

The New Mexico aspects ofthe ARnie include applicationsof ,atomic weapons (at Kirtla )and testing of rockets, guimissiles and bomlbs and taraircraft at Holloman.

The tvvo installations here are \only two of 10 sea t t ere dthroughout the nation. The oth­ers are devoted to various di­vi:sions of Air Force re earch-

I from propellers to personnel.a ' Job

At Kirtland the principal jobi "mate" nuclear weaponsdevelopeQ. !by the Atomic nergyCommission with the Air Forceplanes which will deliver them.Holloman has shot rockets car­rying monkeys and mice intospace over the desert. It is there,too, rthart COIL John P. S tapp rideshis rocket propelled decelerationsled.

The people at Holloman arealso interested in space biology,electronics, atmospherics, physio­logy and psychology.

According to the Air ~orce

ARDC "has been called upon tomeet the chaUenge of any un­foreseen aggress'or by providingthe Air Force equipment ·thatis fully abreast the scientific andtechnological potential of thetimes.. ."

"The establishment of ARDe(in January, 1950) was the re­sult of general recognition of theneed for unified direction a ~

Snow, wind, dust and cold flailed Albuquerque and NewMexico Mpnday in a belated winter storm that raked across thelength of the state. .

Precipitation was scant, but there was plenty of everythlelse, including the prospect of har freezes

Albuquerque received a weirdmixture of snow, wind, dust,unshine and considerable colder

temperatures. The sno\v an1outlt­ed {)nly to a trace at the airport,but about 4 inches of snow fellon Sandia Crest, whitening theentire mountain range east of

I the city.

\\Tin.dy at CarlsbadThe wind here generally I

averaged 25-35 miles per hour,but the rest of the state wasn'tso fortunate. Carlsbad recordedvelocities of more than 50 milesper hour and several other sec­tions also reported visibility re­duced to nearly zero by blowingdust and sand.

The snow which began aboutmidnight Sun day, producedIneasurable n10isture at onlyfour stations-all of them in thewe tern portion: Zuni .24; Gal­l .09, Glenwood and Colum­bus each .02. Traces were re­corded at Albuquerque, Las Ve­gas, Santa Fe, Grants, Farlning­ton, Raton and Alamogordo.

Ter.tperatures FallTcn1peratures dipped sharply

in the \\ ake of the storm which1110ved from northwest to south­east.

Albuquerque's high of 52 wasrecorded at n1idnight and wasdown 21 degrees from Sunday.

IElsewhere maximums s prefrom 34: at Zuni (a 2& degreedrop) to 75 at Hobbs.

The Weather Bureau said theworst of the storm was oveJ:Monday night although partlycloudy weather and snow fiur.!ries will continue in some sec· Itions today.

The roaring, dusty winds ham-I pered air transportation i nsoutheastern New Mexico, shoo­ing off some flights at Roswelland Carlsbad... For the Albuquerque area thestorm gave April a chilly startafter the warmest March in 22years. The weathe.r bureau saidthe average temperature lastmonth was 49.2 degrees, or 3.2degrees above normal. That was Ithe warmest March since the49.3-degree average recorded forthe month in 1934.

The storln's lack of moisturealso e~tended the city's new'

60 days. Last mE;~'-"""~I'~ __oisture here fell