On a January night in 1961, a U.S. Air Force bomber broke in half while flying over eastern North Carolina. From the belly of the B-52 fell two bombs -- two nuclear bombs that hit the ground near the city of Goldsboro.
A disaster worse than the devastation wrought in Hiroshima and Nagasaki could have befallen the United States that night. But it didn't, thanks to a series of fortunate missteps.
Declassified documents that the National Security Archive released this week offered new details about the incident. The blaring headline read: "Multi-Megaton Bomb Was Virtually 'Armed' When It Crashed to Earth."
Or, as Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara put it in back then, "By the slightest margin of chance, literally the failure of two wires to cross, a nuclear explosion was averted."
THE INCEDENT:
The B-52 was flying over North Carolina on January 24, 1961, when it suffered a "failure of the right wing," the report said.
As the plane broke apart, the two bombs plummeted toward the ground. The parachute opened on one; it didn't on the other.
"The impact of the aircraft breakup initiated the fuzing sequence for both bombs," the summary of the documents said.
In other words, both weapons came alarmingly close to detonating.
Weapon 1, the bomb whose parachute opened, landed intact. Fortunately, the safing pins that provided power from a generator to the weapon had been yanked -- preventing it from going off.
Weapon 2, the second bomb with the unopened parachute, landed in a free fall. The impact of the crash put it in the "armed" setting. Fortunately -- once again -- it damaged another part of the bomb needed to initiate an explosion.
While it's unclear how frequently these types of accidents have occurred, the Defense Department has disclosed 32 accidents involving nuclear weapons between 1950 and 1980.
There are at least 21 declassified accounts between 1950 and 1968 of aircraft-related incidents in which nuclear weapons were lost, accidentally dropped, jettisoned for safety reasons or on board planes that crashed. The accidents occurred in various U.S. states, Greenland, Spain, Morocco and England, and over the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and the Mediterranean Sea.
Another five accidents occurred when planes were taxiing or parked.
Two months after the close call in Goldsboro, another B-52 was flying in the western United States when the cabin depressurized and the crew ejected, leaving the pilot to steer the bomber away from populated areas, according to a DOD document. The plane crashed in Yuba City, California, but safety devices prevented the two onboard nuclear weapons from detonating.
The Goldsboro incident was first detailed last year in the book "Command and Control" by Eric Schlosser. The documents released this week provided additional chilling details.
Eight crew members were aboard the plane that night. Five survived the crash.
"I could see three or four other chutes against the glow of the wreckage," recounted the co-pilot, Maj. Richard Rardin, according to an account published by the University of North Carolina.
"I hit some trees. I had a fix on some lights and started walking."
The MK39 bombs weighed 10,000 pounds and their explosive yield was 3.8 megatons. Compare that to the bombs dropped in Hiroshima and Nagasaki: They were 0.01 and 0.02 megatons.
But Rardin didn't know then what a catastrophe had been avoided.
"My biggest difficulty getting back was the various and sundry dogs I encountered on the road."
Declassified documents that the National Security Archive released this week offered new details about the incident.
It just freaks me out.....50 year old secrets.....100 year old secrets.....1,000 year old secrets. All purposely kept by those in charge. From those that ain't. To control.
It's not even like it's some new evil. Been around forever. Crazy.
[This message has been edited by Boondawg (edited 06-12-2014).]
Declassified documents that the National Security Archive released this week offered new details about the incident.
It just freaks me out.....50 year old secrets.....100 year old secrets.....1,000 year old secrets. All purposely kept by those in charge. From those that ain't. To control.
It's not even like it's some new evil. Been around forever. Crazy.
A large number of secrets are kept simply because there is no reason for the public to know. If the information could be used in a manner that that may cause harm to the public or the nation, then it is classified. Get over it. Nothing to do with "control". (I'm not speaking about the above article...just talking about why some information is kept from public knowledge - based on your words)
[This message has been edited by Neils88 (edited 06-12-2014).]
Classification is for a stupid and obviously ignorant population.
When people can't handle the truth you are already on the wrong side of having a great society.
I want to know everything too! ...but I also respect the fact that there is a lot of info out there that can really lead to harm if it gets in the wrong hands.
I want to know everything too! ...but I also respect the fact that there is a lot of info out there that can really lead to harm if it gets in the wrong hands.
They lost another bomb right off Savannah. And it's still there.
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Oh, ok. I thought the Government was supposed to be an extension of us. I want to know everything.
It's just a dream of mine. I know it's not practical or possible.
It's just that my instincts tell me it is not in my best interest to keep any information from me...
Just remember what Agent K said: "A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky, dangerous animals and you know it." Sure, they can tell you. You can deal with it. Its the rest of us they have to keep calm.
Did you ever keep something from your wife, because you didn't want her to worry? Same thing.
The only difference is who has been in office since 08. Had a Rep won, than your responses would have been more to, That is our military working to protect us." Just as the video says. You Need Me on That Wall. You Want Me on That Wall. I served under Reagan, Bush Sr. and Clinton. Flew many missions for our Country. To demean some of our failed missions pisses me off. Believe me, things didn't always go as planned, But we worked at fixing the problem. If the higher ups, covered up. It was because you didn't have a need to know. We would work on a fix. If you have a problem with our military practicing to protect us and having some accidents, Then you need to do as the video says.
PICK UP A WEAPON AND STAND YOUR POST. OTHERWISE. I DONT GIVE A DAMN WHAT YOU THINK YOU DESERVE!
------------------ 84 Show winner 88 LT1
[This message has been edited by bonzo (edited 06-13-2014).]
Keeping secrets from your friends is so you can keep secrets from your enemies.
You are absolutely right. Why has that mentality changed? Now, It is, hiding from the public, I don't understand it. We have done this for years. Now, It is bad to keep the public from what the military is up to. Why people have forgot that the military is here to protect us. We are not after you. We are here to defend against all enemies, foreign and domestic. This oath has been taken for years.
You are absolutely right. Why has that mentality changed? Now, It is, hiding from the public, I don't understand it. We have done this for years. Now, It is bad to keep the public from what the military is up to. Why people have forgot that the military is here to protect us. We are not after you. We are here to defend against all enemies, foreign and domestic. This oath has been taken for years.
The mentality hasn't changed. People see a difference between keeping secrets of national security and covering up scandals, wrongdoing, or malfeasance that should be exposed and the parties responsible held accountable. The more people see evidence of corruption, the more they distrust and the more they want to expose those in the wrong.
A majority of voters say the Obama administration is less competent than Bill Clinton's and a plurality say it is less competent than George W. Bush's according to a new Fox News poll released Wednesday.
Sixty-eight percent say the Obama administration is less competent that the Clinton administration. Forty-eight percent say it is less competent than Bush's, compared to 42 percent who say it is more competent. Seven percent judge Obama's and Bush's the same.
Fifty-five percent say that the Obama administration has made the country weaker; 35 percent say his administration has made it stronger.
The poll was conducted June 1-3 by the Democratic Anderson Robbins Research and the Republican Shaw & Company Research.
[This message has been edited by Formula88 (edited 06-14-2014).]
It must make things much easier for you to ignore something you don't like because of the source. It saves you from all that bothersome thinking.
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Anderson Robbins Research (D) / Shaw & Company Research (R) Interviews Conducted: N = 1,006 registered voters (656 landline, 350 cell phone) June 1-3, 2014 Questions 1, 3-15 and 32-46 are for release 6PM ET Wednesday, June 4, 2014. Questions 2 and 16-31 are held for future release.
Methodology
The Fox News Poll is conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R). The poll was conducted by telephone with live interviewers June 1-3, 2014 among a random national sample of 1,006 registered voters (RV). Results based on the full sample have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points.
Landline and cell phone telephone numbers were randomly selected for inclusion in the survey using a probability proportionate to size method, which means that phone numbers for each state are proportional to the number of voters in each state.
Results are of registered voters, unless otherwise noted. LV = likely voters
Results from Fox News polls before February 2011 were conducted by Opinion Dynamics Corp.
