AviationBanter - View Single Post - "Lost Nuke" on National Geographic Channel

**Ken S. Tucker**

On Mar 2, 3:46 pm, Dan wrote:
Ken S. Tucker wrote:
On Mar 2, 1:47 pm, Joe Osman wrote:
On Feb 26, 1:01 pm, "Ken S. Tucker" wrote:

On Feb 26, 8:49 am, frank wrote:
On Feb 26, 7:31 am, Dean wrote:
On Feb 25, 8:45 am, "Ken S. Tucker" wrote:
On Feb 25, 5:29 am, T.L. Davis wrote:
On Tue, 24 Feb 2009 18:21:59 -0800 (PST), Joe Osman
wrote:
I'm watching a program "Lost Nuke" on the National Geographic Channel
right now (9pm eastern US time). It's about the first lost USAF nuke
from a B-36 in British Columbia in the 1950's. It's also on at
midnight tonight Tuesday Feb 24. It's very interesting so far.
Joe
I guess that makes 2 now (B-47 off of Georgia if I recall). How many
megatons? I'll watch, thanks!!
TL
LOL here's part of the list,http://www.milnet.com/cdiart.htm
Ken
LOL: "Another event from the 1968 list, involving a U.S. Navy Terrier
missile (January 20, 1966; NAS Mayport, Florida) was not considered to
be an accident, it has been categorized as a significant incident. In
that incident, a nuclear warhead separated from the missile, and fell
about eight feet [aboard the USS Luce, a guided missile frigate. The
event occurred on January 19]. The warhead was dented; no other damage
occurred. "
How would you like to have been the sailor working on the missile when
THAT happened? Talk about heart stopping.....
Dean
When I see these lists, I think of just how the military works. Not
everything is written down, files are lost, reports are lost. Or
classified then shredded.
Best was one that rolled off a Navy carrier near the Marianas Trench.
Interestingly, not a lot on Army or Navy incidents. I think both those
services really have more than a few books on their nuclear systems
that need to be written. From emplacement of weapons to stymie a
Soviet attack on Western Europe ( generally fixed locations such as
tunnels and bridges) to nuclear depth charges and mines, there were a
whole lot of weapons that have been stricken from the inventory.
In the 1950s, nuclear weapons design was pretty much kids in a candy
shop. We'll have everything. No doubt the Soviets had similar
experiences.
Some of the early weapons had nuclear components that were loaded into
the bombs before flight. Until at least the late 1950s, the pilot
would sign out a nuclear component and go load that into the weapon
before he took off in SAC. It was removed after flight and stored.
Modern weapon design is different from that.
I've read several accounts of the B-36 in BC, this one is ok,http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1950_Br...bia_B-36_crash
(We have a place south of there in BC).
It's a real SNAFU that a giant Nuke bomber was brought down
by carberator icing, (sad), a well known phenomena ,especially
as Alaskan operations were anticipated, almost unbelievable.
I guess it's possible the pilot stayed with the bird, that part is
complicated.
Ken- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
The "Lost Nuke" show mentioned a "non-nuclear" explosion over the St.
Lawrence.
The only possibility on the MILNET mirror site posted earlier would
be:

No. 5, November 10, 1950/B-50/Over Water, Outside United States
Because of an in-flight aircraft emergency, a weapon containing no
capsule of nuclear material was jettisoned over water from an altitude
of 10,500 feet. A high-explosive detonation was observed.
CDI: There is no record of recovery of this nuclear weapon.
Joe

Accounts vary, here's one,
http://www.mysteriesofcanada.com/BC/broken_arrow.htm

They blew up the warhead conventionally with the dummy,
and "likely" threw the Pu arming core into the ocean, where
it now sits.

I highly doubt that last part.

Where do YOU think it is?
Ken