tactical nuke

IOW - earlier & greater cooperation with SAAB and the British companies, while the cooperation between the later and the French and other European NATO is much smaller? Draken was powered by the British engine, Viggen was supposed to be powered by the Medway, while the Gripen should've been just...

Ever since the first Zeppelin raids in World War 1 the vulnerability of the civilian population of the UK to attack from the air has been a major factor in shaping our armed forces. The tile "Air Defence of Great Britain" comes from the organisation set up to meet the only air threat imagined in...

What if Saddam never invaded Kuwait and never being throw up??? What would be the state of Ba'ath Iraqi armed forces?

I saw a B58 Hustler for the first time the other day, I was surprised by how small it was. I also finally understand what the combination fuel-weapon store is and does. Was the design too specific and limited to remain in service beyond 1969? Could it have carried SRAMs or other advanced...

The 'Massive Retaliation' era ~1957-1967 appears to have skewed Defence Projects and Procurement compared to what occurred previously and what occurred in the 'Flexible Response' era where conventional forces were given much greater priority compared to nuclear forces. This made me think that if...

The fledgling Lufftwaffe and Marineflieger appeared to be interesting in buying British in their earliest days. Of course this was the worst possible time to deal with the British, so every effort fell over. Wiki referencing Wood. The German Defence Ministry first expressed interest in the...

In 1960 some 64 Canberra B2 & B6 in 4 sqns based in Britain and assigned to SACEUR were replaced by 24 Valiants in 3 sqns. Despite the significant decrease in numbers this was considered a net benefit because of the Valiant's all weather capabilities. By 1964 the RAF still had 9 sqns of Canberra...

From the 70s to the end of the Cold War France deployed its own tracked vehicle launched battlefield nuclear missile, Pluton. A truck and trailer mounted replacement Hades was entering service as the Cold War ended. In peacetime Pluton and its warheads were stationed in France. However, once a...

One of the more frightening aspects of the Cold War, especially in Europe was the range and quantity of nuclear weapons deployed for use on the battlefield or against targets involved in the fighting. As NATO developed more effective and accurate alternatives it was able to reduce the range and...

If things get more interesting, what targets in the UK might Putin nuke? An interesting video, and some backup data: UK Limited Nuclear War Target List View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYWcgF4Wwog

Anyone interested in Australian attitudes to getting nuclear weapons should start with this thread that explains how difficult it is and the US role. https://www.secretprojects.co.uk/threads/uk-thermonuclear-warheads.10419/post-98670 The UK experience with the US would be similar for Australia.

In the late 1950s the US deployed a bewildering range of tactical nuclear weapons in Western Europe. The US Army had its spectacular 280mm atomic cannon mounted between two trucks. It then had smaller 8" warheads for the M115 howitzer which were made available to the UK and other NATO allies...

While the size and importance of France's armed forces in 1914 and 1939 is well understood, their importance since 1945 does not seem to be appreciated. Until the creation of West Germany's Bundeswehr at the end of the 1950s it was France that bore the brunt of providing the largest West...

The UK nuclear deterrent has become after the NHS a political commitment for both Tory and Labour PMs to show their metal. But an earlier Tory PM, Harold Macmillan had his doubts as did Sir Winston Churchill. Macmillan got on well with the new young US President. Kennedy for his part saw the UK...

A staple of the Air Force's long-range strike portfolio has come to the end of the road. The AGM-86C/D Conventional Air-Launched Cruise Missile (CALCM), the non-nuclear sibling of the AGB-86B that remains in service as the backbone of the B-52's nuclear strike mission, is being put rest after...

Robert's latest book has gone to print and should be available, alongside the man himself, on the Crecy Publishing stand at IPMS Telford on 9th November 2019. Strategic Air Command in the UK Throughout its 46-year history, Strategic Air Command (SAC) was inextricably linked to the United...

With the AIM-26 using the same warhead as Genie, being guided, having longer range, and a quarter of the weight, why did Genie stay in service longer than the AIM-26? And why was Genie used on the F-106 with the guided AIM-26 being used on the earlier F-102? Anybody have any insight into this...

I don't believe this topic has been introduced before, and if so please excuse the thread. In 1959 the Aerospace Research Projects Agency (ARPA) organized a think tank, code named JASON, composed of America's leading scientist to analyze various high level programs and topics that could...

If I may put in a shameless self plug for a moment: I have finished a companion volume to 'A Vertical Empire' called 'An Atomic Empire'. This deals with the British atomic programme from Windscale onwards, dealing with not only Windscale but the atomic weapons programme and the nuclear power...