Pu$$y Galore (possibly NSFW)
The Pussy Galore was a short lived but legendary F-105D marking. Originally conceived as a joke on KC-135 tanker crews who had trouble hooking up their fueling booms, it became a welcome morale booster for tanker crews. The original Pussy Galore was painted over and later shot down in 1967. The Pussy Galore II marking was used between Oct 1966 and Dec 1966 by Capt. Victor Vizcarra till an uptight USAF senior officer decided that putting naked women markings on his unit aircraft was a no-no.
The US Military’s Backpack Atomic
Back in the late 1950s the US military was enamored with using ‘atomics’ as much as possible. The Navy had nuclear depth charges, the air force had nuclear tipped air-to-air and surface to air missiles to obliterate swarms of Soviet bombers, and the Army even had nuclear artillery shells and recoil-less rifle rounds.
Congressmen loving the W54 as used on the Davy Crocket. I mean who couldn’t love a 50-pound nuke!
Speaking of which, at this time the W54 warhead was hatched. This was about the smallest US warhead ever used at just 10.75 inches diameter (270 mm), about 15.7 inches long (400 mm), and hefted slightly over 50 pounds (23 kg). It could be variable yielded due to its implosion type of design from anywhere ranging in 10 tons to one kilotons of TNT equivalent.
It was also very dirty–when fired it would produce an almost instantly lethal radiation dosage (in excess of 10,000 rem) within 500 feet (150 m), and a probably fatal dose (around 600 rem) within a quarter-mile (400 m). The W54 was designed by Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory and built by the United States Atomic Energy Commission. Around 400 units were manufactured from 1961 until early 1962. These were given to the USAF who used them as the warhead of a few AIM-26A Falcon AAM and the AGM-45 Walleye ASM’s. The Army used them on the 2-mile range (talk about your balls glowing in the dark!) M-29 Davy Crockett Weapon System, a tactical nuclear recoilless gun for firing the M388 nuclear projectile. Then there was a couple hundred left that were used in a distinctly more…simple..delivery system.
By foot.
Called the MK54 Special Atomic Demolition Munition (SADM), the W54 was attached to a battery-powered code-decoder lock and firing unit, packed inside a waterproof/shockproof case and the whole affair crammed into a very well-padded OD rucksack (the H-912 transport container). This gave a 163-pound overall weight that could be toted by a beefy paratrooper or frogman where it needed to go.
(1965 Sandina Labs Film on its use)
The concept behind the SADM was that it could be paradropped or combat swam behind enemy lines by a 2-3 man team of Green Berets or Navy SEALs (both of which were founded by Kennedy in the early 1960s). Said commandos could plant the device at an enemy arsenal depot, a strategic crossroads or bridge, key stockpile, important factory (the Soviets loved to have everything made at one BIG factory), or in a harbor. Once planted the device could be set to go off on a delay while the troops were extracted by Skyhook, helicopter, small plane, or (in the case of the SEALs) by small boat or submarine offshore.
A view of the interior components of the W45 MADM, showing (from left) the packing container, warhead, code-decoder, and firing unit. The MADM was a similar design to the SADM
Besides this, more low-speed engineering units could use the SADM to destroy key points in West Germany should 10,000 Warsaw Pact tanks swarmed over the Fulda Gap. It wouldn’t be outside the vein of thought that at least a few (deniable) SADMs were prepositioned overseas in foreign capitals in time of crisis should they be needed.
A SADM on display in New Mexico (inert of course) left is the device housing, right is the backpack
The locked storage suitcase that the SADM rested in when not being hurled out of airplanes, smuggled over the border on the back of a yak, or going for a drag by a frogman
The H912 Rucksack. It looks comfy because it HAS to be. Afterall it has 163-pounds of atomic love in it capable of bringing 1-kiloton of party favors to the get together.
They were withdrawn in 1988 and are not currently maintained (probably because they came up with a classified replacement that doesn’t weigh 160-pounds).
Just saying.
The AC-130 Specter Gunship: The flying first lady
Americans have long had a fascination with arming airplanes. In 1912 when the aeroplane was only just 9-years old, a US Army officer brought a Lewis machinegun up for a test flight, zipping rounds at targets on the ground below. An observer at the time asked, “Why would you want to put a machine gun in an airplane?” Well the ultimate evolution of that is the AC-130 Specter gunship.
Read the rest in my column at GUNS.com
Guns of Grunt: 2013
In 2013, the firearms carried by the regular soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines of the US military are among the best in the world. In some cases, these guns represent more than a century of continually evolving designs while others are about as new and visionary as we’ve ever seen.
Although very similar in profile to the Vietnam-era M16 and civilian AR-15, the M4A1 carbine, currently the standard front line rifle of the US military, is something altogether different. Much shorter, its 14.5-inch barrel and collapsible stock gives an overall length of just 29.75-inches, nearly a foot shorter than the M16A4 that it supplemented in 1994 (as the 3-round burst capable M4) and has now largely replaced…..
Read the rest in my column at GUNS.com
The High Standard HD 22 Pistol: Dirty deeds, done dirt cheap
While walking around gun shows chances are you may come across a pistol that looks like the missing evolutionary link between the Colt Woodsman of the 1920s and the Ruger MkII of today. With an exposed hammer, steel construction, and single-action design, the High Standard HD is more a throwback than an antique but it is still highly sought after today. Its peculiar history may be a reason why.
Founded in 1926 and run by Swedish firearms designer Carl Gustav Swebilius, High Standard purchased the Hartford Arms and Equipment Company and began making .22caliber pistols in the 1930s. Starting with their Model A and Model B designs they offered their new semi-autos to the public at a low price that made them immediately stand out in the cash strapped Depression era. In 1940 with some early successes in their pocket, they moved forward with what was to become their most popular model for the next twenty years, the H-D.
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The Browning M2: All will kneel before the mother of ‘Heavy Metal’
Since the 1930s, the sound of American awesomeness on the battlefield has been played through the .50-caliber heavy machine gun. This gun, officially dubbed the M2 though cherished as the Ma Deuce or Mr. Deuce by our troops in the field, is the longest serving weapon in front line use in US military history. If you ever have the privilege to fire one, it’s easy to see why.
Read the rest in my column at GUNS.com
And the Bears are Back over Guam
http://www.guampdn.com/article/20130216/NEWS01/130216006
The two bomber aircraft were followed by two U.S. Air Force F-15 fighter aircraft from Andersen Air Force Base, according to Air Force Capt. Kim Bender, a spokeswoman for the Pacific Air Force in Hawaii. She said the jets “scrambled and responded to the aircraft.”
“The Tu-95s were intercepted and left the area in a northbound direction. No further actions occurred,” she said. Bender said no other details would be released “for operational security reasons.”
According to one military official, the Russian Bear bombers remained in international airspace, the encounter between the U.S. and Russian aircraft “stayed professional” and there was no incident.
The official said it’s impossible to determine whether the Russian bombers carried any nuclear weapons. The giant 188-ton Bear can carry up to 15,000 kg (33,000 lb), including the Raduga Kh-20, Kh-22, Kh-26, and Kh-55 air-to-surface missiles and have an unrefueled range of over 9000-miles.
The Colt Aircrewman Special: The all aluminum .38 caliber
In the early 1950s, the newly born US Air Force needed a brave new handgun for its atomic
cowboys. The main thing, for better or worse, was that the gun be lightweight. The solution, in classic 1950s style, was aluminum Aircrewman revolver, which, much like a lot of 1950s style was both a success and a failure at the same time.
In World War 1, pilots and aircrew often found themselves lost, crashed, or shot down in areas that were less than friendly. This led to those daring young aviators to begin carrying handguns and in some cases rifles with them for those unexpected stops. Throughout World War 2, US Army Air corps, personnel and glider pilots often carried full sized .38 revolvers of various manufacturers supported by the occasional M-1 carbine.
In 1947, the US Air Force was carved off from the Army and the new brass realized the need for a modern space age handgun for the occasional aircrew emergency, survival situations, and nuclear weapon’s security breach. In a time where every ounce of weight was sliced from huge bombers like the Convair B-36 “Peacemaker” to allow them to carry atomic weapons to the Soviet Union, the watch word was ‘lightweight.’
Colt answered this call for a small and effective, but super lightweight handgun, with a modified version of their then-new Cobra line of snub-nosed revolvers. It was named the Aircrewman.
Read the rest in my column at GUNS.com
SIGS in the US Military
The standard sidearm for the US armed forces as everyone knows is the Beretta M9 (92F). Before 1984, it was the legendary Colt 1911 .45 (versions of which are still in use with special operations units.) However, what you may not know is that several variants of the SIG P-series pistol also serve.
Read the rest in my column at GUNS.com
Today is a special Day
Know a vet? shake his hand and thank him. Related to a vet, give them a hug today. Veteran in crisis? Dial
1.877.424.3838 for 24/7 assistance. Support the National Coalition for Homeless Vets at
Think about this… SSGT David Bellavia went into a house with six insurgents in Falluja on his 29th birthday (which incidentally is Nov 10th).
Then things got real…..
Goodreads
