Broken Arrow- New Book on Nuclear Weapons Accidents

[Mike463 0]

Book details thirty-six U.S. nuclear weapons accidents-

 

"Broken Arrow- The Declassified History of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Accidents"

 

322 pages, 8.5" x 11", perfect binding, black and white interior ink

 

"Using declassified government material James C. Oskins and Michael H. Maggelet have written the most comprehensive and detailed study of the thirty six known U.S. nuclear weapons accidents, known as "Broken Arrows". The authors have poured through government documents, aircraft accident reports, nuclear weapon incident and accident reports, and first hand accounts to shed light on the Department of Defense's vague summaries of nuclear weapons accidents.

 

Their research dispels myths surrounding the Tybee and Goldsboro accidents, and provides great insight into the human element and the condition of individual weapons and AEC or DOD recovery operations regarding nearly every Broken Arrow. The underlying cause of such accidents, be it human error or equipment malfunction, is clearly shown in formerly secret reports and photographs."

 

http://www.lulu.com/content/1409049

 

Yours, Mike

[sparkomatic 7]

wait which was the B-52 accident near Savannah?

[Rambler 1-1 9]

wait which was the B-52 accident near Savannah?

 

you mean the B-47 that collided with an F-86 and dropped a thermonuke that hasn't been found? that was tybee. check this site: LINK

Edited January 8, 2008 by Rambler 1-1

[JediMaster 451]

I seem to recall a B-52 dropping one off GA as well as the one off Spain.

[Mike463 0]

"DOD Narrative Summaries of Nuclear Weapons Accidents" provides short descriptions of the following-

1. 2/13/50 - AF B-36, off British Columbia
   
2. 4/11/50 - AF B-29, Manzano Base, Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S
   
3. 7/13/50 - AF B-50, Lebanon, Ohio, U.S.
   
4. 8/5/50 - AF B-29, Fairfield-Sussun Air Force Base, California, U.S. (now TRAVIS AFB)
   
5. 11/10/50 - AF B-50, over water outside U.S.
   
6. 3/10/56 - AF B-47, Mediterranean Sea
   
7. 7/27/56 - AF B-47, Overseas Base
   
8. 5/22/57 - AF B-36, Kirtland AFB, New Mexico, U.S.
   
9. 7/28/57 - AF C-124 cargo plane, Off U.S. East Coast
   
10. 10/11/57 - AF B-47, Homestead AFB, Florida, U.S.
    
11. 1/31/58 - AF B-47, Overseas Base
    
12. 2/5/58 - AF B-47, Savannah River, Georgia, U.S.
    
13. 3/11/58 - AF B-47, Florence, South Carolina, U.S.
    
14. 11/4/58 - AF B-47, Dyess AFB, Abilene, Texas, U.S.
    
15. 11/26/58 - AF B-47, Chennault AFB, Lake Charles, Louisiana, U.S.
    
16. 1/18/59 - AF F-100 fighter, Pacific Base
    
17. 7/6/59 - AF C-124 cargo plane, Barksdale AFB, Bossier City, Louisiana, U.S.
    
18. 9/25/59 - USN P-5M, Off Whidbey Island, Washington, U.S.
    
19. 10/15/59 - AF B-52, Hardinsberg, Kentucky, U.S.
    
20. 6/7/60 - BOMARC AGM, McGuire AFB, near Trenton, New Jersey, U.S.
    
21. 1/24/61 - AF B-52, Goldsboro, North Carolina, U.S.
    
22. 3/14/61 - AF B-52, Yuba City, California, U.S.
    
23. 11/13/63 - Storage, Medina Base, San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
    
24. 1/13/64 - AF B-52, Cumberland, Maryland, U.S.
    
25. 12/5/64 - AF LGM 30B (Minutemand I ICBM), Ellsworth Air Force Base, Rapid City Dakota, U.S.
    
26. 12/8/64 - AF B-58, Bunker Hill (Now Grissom) AFB, Peru, Indiana, U.S.
    
27. 10/11/65 - AF C-124 cargo, Wright-Patterson AFB, near Dayton, Ohio, U.S.
    
28. 12/5/65 - USN A-4, at sea over the Pacific Ocean more than 500 miles from land
    
29. 1/17/59 - AF B-52, Palomares, Spain
    
30. 1/21/68 - AF B-52, Thule Air Base, Greenland
    
31. Spring 1968 - Classified, Atlantic Sea
    
32. 9/19/80 - AF Titan II ICBM, Damascus, Arkansas, U.S.
    

33 to 36- Four additional accidents at Johnston Island in 1962.

 

Yours, Mike

Edited January 9, 2008 by Mike463

[JediMaster 451]

"Please don't shoot at the thermonuclear weapons."

 

31 is interesting, I guess it was a USN thing although it could have been air-carried. I think that means they never found it.

[Mike463 0]

The book has 13 pages detailing the loss of the USS Scorpion (accident 31).

 

Yours, Mike

[GASCAN39 7]

I know it was not an accident, but it had to be quite a pucker factor when that BUFF flew from Minot to Barksdale with live nukes on board and nobody noticed. (As Homer Simpson would say DOH)

[+Typhoid 231]

I know it was not an accident, but it had to be quite a pucker factor when that BUFF flew from Minot to Barksdale with live nukes on board and nobody noticed. (As Homer Simpson would say DOH)

 

that was not a Broken Arrow. But yes, it raised the "Oh CR@P!!" factor pretty high.......

 

waaaaaay back when I was on alert on the NEACP (alternate to the NMCC) we got a Broken Arrow report from a base that shall remain nameless. We of course went into high PRF, started the checklists, linked up with the NMCC, etc. When one of our guys called the base commander for an update the response was something along the lines of "How did you guys get that? It wasn't supposed to go out!" (exercise message without the exercise header).

 

we filed that one in the "Inadvertant Exercise of Higher Authority" folder......