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They are not shipped with the warhead. I used to work in the missle area at Hill AFB. They came in without them. I believe they are left at the silo. View Quote Missiles are shipped in 3 parts. The actual missile is installed first. It's transported out in TEL vehicle. Next the guidance system (also called a "can", because it looked like a big can) is brought out in a P&E van, then the warhead is brought out in a nuclear convoy as you see in the video. |
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seriously doubt it was a nuke. Nukes are transported all the time around the US and they don't get the cluster of a convoy in the video. They are protected by escort vehicles but the semi truck and trailer are very stealth. View Quote Well sorry to ruin your day, but that's how we (retired E-7 USAF) transported warheads to and from the missile silo. What you are thinking of is a DOE courier transport. Two totally different things. |
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Weird. Those aren't Peacekeepers Sleep Keepers, but they kind of look like them. I'd think that vid was 15 years old if it wasn't for the tan Humvee. Ain't that the fuckin' truth! I got some of my best sleep in those damn things. |
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Well sorry to ruin your day, but that's how we (retired E-7 USAF) transported warheads to and from the missile silo. What you are thinking of is a DOE courier transport. Two totally different things. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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seriously doubt it was a nuke. Nukes are transported all the time around the US and they don't get the cluster of a convoy in the video. They are protected by escort vehicles but the semi truck and trailer are very stealth. Well sorry to ruin your day, but that's how we (retired E-7 USAF) transported warheads to and from the missile silo. What you are thinking of is a DOE courier transport. Two totally different things. Yup. Former nuke puke here. |
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I'd hate to be the truck driver.
For I seriously doubt you could make a stop at the flying j in the event you need to make a poopie. |
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Just a few notes: There's a lot more security than you see in that video AF convoys are too distinctive and frequent for stealth to be worthwhile, although there are various deception measures that we won't discuss here. And DOE convoys don't exactly roll light on security either. Letting a random car cut into your convoy is also considered undesirable. |
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They really do. If they were smart they'd buy an old Swift truck and trailer, reinforce the hell out of it and hide in plain site. But nope, not our rocket scientists, have to make a big show out of it. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Where does it say it's a nuke Dunno, but the hazmat placard on the trailer made me giggle. It was difficult to make out what number was on the placard, but I doubt they would haul a nuke like that. They really do. If they were smart they'd buy an old Swift truck and trailer, reinforce the hell out of it and hide in plain site. But nope, not our rocket scientists, have to make a big show out of it. How do you know that the warhead wasn't in the Hostess Hoho panel truck that passed by four minutes ago? |
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Did you ever see them or was it just a big shipping container? View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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What would be the purpose of moving a nuke? Decommissioning or upgrades? Something else? Periodic maintenance Lube job and rotate the warheads? Fuck if I know, I just guarded them when they came in from the silos Did you ever see them or was it just a big shipping container? Like the actual warhead? They're decidedly boring looking. |
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seriously doubt it was a nuke. Nukes are transported all the time around the US and they don't get the cluster of a convoy in the video. They are protected by escort vehicles but the semi truck and trailer are very stealth. View Quote For Y.12 yes. For USAF weapons MXS, they roll deep. |
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Quoted: This is a trainer version of the one that goes in a cruise missile (also publicly released): http://media.dma.mil/2012/Nov/03/2000100157/-1/-1/0/121102-F-AC123-003.JPG View Quote Oooh. I can see the Teller-Ulam design poking through. ETA: Reading up on the W80, it seems bass-ackwards, with the thermonuclear part in the front. And spherical. |
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View Quote LOL Exactly what came to mind |
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Question for the Nuke Pukes.... and i realize there cant be any direct answers or details, but when they did Maintenance on the Warheads, did they swap out individual MIRVs or Swap the whole Package so the bird was out of service once instead of several times? and if thats still too much to answer.no worries
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Question for the Nuke Pukes.... and i realize there cant be any direct answers or details, but when they did Maintenance on the Warheads, did they swap out individual MIRVs or Swap the whole Package so the bird was out of service once instead of several times? and if thats still too much to answer.no worries View Quote What MIRVs? |
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seriously doubt it was a nuke. Nukes are transported all the time around the US and they don't get the cluster of a convoy in the video. They are protected by escort vehicles but the semi truck and trailer are very stealth. Well sorry to ruin your day, but that's how we (retired E-7 USAF) transported warheads to and from the missile silo. What you are thinking of is a DOE courier transport. Two totally different things. Yup. Former nuke puke here. When were you in? Former 463 as well from 84-94. |
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Question for the Nuke Pukes.... and i realize there cant be any direct answers or details, but when they did Maintenance on the Warheads, did they swap out individual MIRVs or Swap the whole Package so the bird was out of service once instead of several times? and if thats still too much to answer.no worries View Quote It's a moot point now. http://www.af.mil/News/ArticleDisplay/tabid/223/Article/485611/malmstrom-completes-final-minuteman-iii-configuration.aspx |
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Where does it say it's a nuke Dunno, but the hazmat placard on the trailer made me giggle. Thats what I'm in here for. I saw this video somewhere else, and immediately thought "Do nuclear weapons need to be placarded radioactive?" Anyone know for sure? |
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It was difficult to make out what number was on the placard, but I doubt they would haul a nuke like that. We used to do it all the time. Well, color me stupid. America's roadways are dangerous, I'd rather see them fly the nuke to their destinations. |
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When were you in? Former 463 as well from 84-94. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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seriously doubt it was a nuke. Nukes are transported all the time around the US and they don't get the cluster of a convoy in the video. They are protected by escort vehicles but the semi truck and trailer are very stealth. Well sorry to ruin your day, but that's how we (retired E-7 USAF) transported warheads to and from the missile silo. What you are thinking of is a DOE courier transport. Two totally different things. Yup. Former nuke puke here. When were you in? Former 463 as well from 84-94. 1999-2001 Out due to injury sustained in former AFSC. |
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It's a moot point now. http://www.af.mil/News/ArticleDisplay/tabid/223/Article/485611/malmstrom-completes-final-minuteman-iii-configuration.aspx View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Question for the Nuke Pukes.... and i realize there cant be any direct answers or details, but when they did Maintenance on the Warheads, did they swap out individual MIRVs or Swap the whole Package so the bird was out of service once instead of several times? and if thats still too much to answer.no worries It's a moot point now. http://www.af.mil/News/ArticleDisplay/tabid/223/Article/485611/malmstrom-completes-final-minuteman-iii-configuration.aspx hey! That was a great article! Confirms my guess. They demated the warhead section, then toted it back to a weapon maintenance / storage area for uncorking. I did mess up though, I left out the target in MIRV. Independently targetable. In case that doesn't click, in a typical rocket / missile, the tube either goes all the way to the target, or the top part does. In a MIRV, the tube just puts the pointy part into a particular window / corridor, then the pointy part separates and several little parts can go to several places at the same time. Like having five-six missiles in each tube! |
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Thats what I'm in here for. I saw this video somewhere else, and immediately thought "Do nuclear weapons need to be placarded radioactive?" Anyone know for sure? View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Where does it say it's a nuke Dunno, but the hazmat placard on the trailer made me giggle. Thats what I'm in here for. I saw this video somewhere else, and immediately thought "Do nuclear weapons need to be placarded radioactive?" Anyone know for sure? My guess: The defense department has been flirting with the other departments for a long time now, and part of that is obeying DOT regulations when possible. I have seen nuclear weapons that have been marked 'radioactive', but I have never seen a transporter marked with anything besides an explosives placard when the net explosives weight exceeds a certain amount. And, in twenty five years of OST convoy spotting (I live near a courier base), I've never ever seen placard one on any of the convoy vehicles, much less the one that carries the cargo. |
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Well, color me stupid. America's roadways are dangerous, I'd rather see them fly the nuke to their destinations. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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It was difficult to make out what number was on the placard, but I doubt they would haul a nuke like that. We used to do it all the time. Well, color me stupid. America's roadways are dangerous, I'd rather see them fly the nuke to their destinations. NNSA has planes AND trains. Most go via overland, though. They have an impressive driving record. Extremely low number of accidents. |
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NNSA has planes AND trains. Most go via overland, though. They have an impressive driving record. Extremely low number of accidents. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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It was difficult to make out what number was on the placard, but I doubt they would haul a nuke like that. We used to do it all the time. Well, color me stupid. America's roadways are dangerous, I'd rather see them fly the nuke to their destinations. NNSA has planes AND trains. Most go via overland, though. They have an impressive driving record. Extremely low number of accidents. Have you gotten a visit yet? Cause you are seriously asking for the man in your life. Munger wrote of the guy that had the FBI show up for taking pictures of random office buildings. |
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Some serious OPSECfuckery when Joe Blow knows when and where a convoy will be rolling through and is able to set up on the side of the road in advance to take video.
Do they announce these moves for public safety? |
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1999-2001 Out due to injury sustained in former AFSC. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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seriously doubt it was a nuke. Nukes are transported all the time around the US and they don't get the cluster of a convoy in the video. They are protected by escort vehicles but the semi truck and trailer are very stealth. Well sorry to ruin your day, but that's how we (retired E-7 USAF) transported warheads to and from the missile silo. What you are thinking of is a DOE courier transport. Two totally different things. Yup. Former nuke puke here. When were you in? Former 463 as well from 84-94. 1999-2001 Out due to injury sustained in former AFSC. Thanks, was curious to know if we may have worked some of the same places and time. Not a very large career field. Now back to the original topic. The DOE couriers are some pretty cool guys, and the equipment was very cool even back in the 80's. You didn't want to impede their progress. I didn't get the opportunity of working on the big missiles just small ones and the usual assortment of bombs. |
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Have you gotten a visit yet? Cause you are seriously asking for the man in your life. Munger wrote of the guy that had the FBI show up for taking pictures of random office buildings. View Quote They know who I am. I am like the number three highest filer of FOIA requests to the DOE, DTRA, and DOD on the topic. I don't bother or chase OST movements, but I like seeing them out and about here. There are also a lot of pics on Flikr, they just don't know what they've photographed. That dude you're talking about is a former nuke worker / current intentional pain in the ass to the DOE. He coordinates lots of protests and sit ins. I've wanted to go out and do a counterprotest, but couldn't due to the jobs I held at the time. In the case you're talking about, it wasn't a random office building. They accused him basically of taking pictures of a facility that didn't exist yet, because they want him to quit complaining about DOE spending money, in my opinion. |
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Question for the Nuke Pukes.... and i realize there cant be any direct answers or details, but when they did Maintenance on the Warheads, did they swap out individual MIRVs or Swap the whole Package so the bird was out of service once instead of several times? and if thats still too much to answer.no worries What MIRVs? The JERRV's slutty twin sister. |
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I didn't get the opportunity of working on the big missiles just small ones and the usual assortment of bombs. View Quote Hey, I would like to thank all of you for your service. I know that may ring hollow, but honestly, y'all are the textbook definition of unsung heroes. I just wish more of the stories could be captured; one day it will all be unclassified, but there won't be anyone left alive to tell them. |
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Thanks, was curious to know if we may have worked some of the same places and time. Not a very large career field. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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1999-2001 Out due to injury sustained in former AFSC. Thanks, was curious to know if we may have worked some of the same places and time. Not a very large career field. Was your tech at Sheppard? I thought I remembered it being somewhere else a number of years before I showed up. |
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NNSA has planes AND trains. Most go via overland, though. They have an impressive driving record. Extremely low number of accidents. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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It was difficult to make out what number was on the placard, but I doubt they would haul a nuke like that. We used to do it all the time. Well, color me stupid. America's roadways are dangerous, I'd rather see them fly the nuke to their destinations. NNSA has planes AND trains. Most go via overland, though. They have an impressive driving record. Extremely low number of accidents. For now. |
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It was difficult to make out what number was on the placard, but I doubt they would haul a nuke like that. We used to do it all the time. Well, color me stupid. America's roadways are dangerous, I'd rather see them fly the nuke to their destinations. NNSA has planes AND trains. Most go via overland, though. They have an impressive driving record. Extremely low number of accidents. For now. |
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View Quote I'ver been next to that exact same SS-18, even got to push "the button" down in the silo. Interesting museum. |
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Was your tech at Sheppard? I thought I remembered it being somewhere else a number of years before I showed up. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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1999-2001 Out due to injury sustained in former AFSC. Thanks, was curious to know if we may have worked some of the same places and time. Not a very large career field. Was your tech at Sheppard? I thought I remembered it being somewhere else a number of years before I showed up. Nope, tech school was at Lowry, our dorm was directly across from the airman's club, very good times at Lowry. |
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Hey, I would like to thank all of you for your service. I know that may ring hollow, but honestly, y'all are the textbook definition of unsung heroes. I just wish more of the stories could be captured; one day it will all be unclassified, but there won't be anyone left alive to tell them. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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I didn't get the opportunity of working on the big missiles just small ones and the usual assortment of bombs. Hey, I would like to thank all of you for your service. I know that may ring hollow, but honestly, y'all are the textbook definition of unsung heroes. I just wish more of the stories could be captured; one day it will all be unclassified, but there won't be anyone left alive to tell them. Thanks, one thing that does surprise me is how much information is actually out there and unclassified. There's been some pretty cool threads over the years that have come up that bring back the good old days. I would multi-quote but still haven't figured that one out yet. |
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what is the technical name of those up-armored Ford Superduties?
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Taking pictures of or harassing nuclear comvoys is a great way to get the FBI to interview you. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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And of course the 'respect muh authority' cop caused it all. Not surprised. Taking pictures of or harassing nuclear comvoys is a great way to get the FBI to interview you. Yeah. "Why can't I video the movement of a critical and vulnerable piece of nuclear weapons logistics?" Some people are so stupid they should have their nutsack used as a pinata at Special Olympics after parties. |
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I've only ever seen a truck like that one other time. It was in a convoy, with a helicopter overhead, in a part of Montana you can't throw a rock and NOT hit a solo. View Quote I'm 99% certain I saw that convoy heading north into Minot as we were heading south last Thursday. One truck (not a Super Duty, one of the armored ones) had a Mk 19 grenade launcher mounted, all the others had what looked to be 240s. There were two helicopters escorting it. Quite a sight. |
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Currently reading "Command and Control", nuclear weapons, the Damasacus Accident, and the illusion of safety. By Eric Schlosser. ISBN 978-0-14-312578-5
Lots in common with the OP. I also recall a book called, maybe, "Broken Arrow" which detailed all known lost/damaged/FUBAR'd nukes up to that time (mid 90's?) |
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Currently reading "Command and Control", nuclear weapons, the Damasacus Accident, and the illusion of safety. By Eric Schlosser. ISBN 978-0-14-312578-5 Lots in common with the OP. I also recall a book called, maybe, "Broken Arrow" which detailed all known lost/damaged/FUBAR'd nukes up to that time (mid 90's?) View Quote That is a great book. |
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