I'll bet you didn't know 3 December, 2020 .. In 1958 the UNITED STATES AIR FORCE accidentally dropped an atomic bomb in rural South Carolina. The weapon did not detonate but still left...

LWW Loc: Banana Republic of America

In 1958 the UNITED STATES AIR FORCE accidentally dropped an atomic bomb in rural South Carolina. The weapon did not detonate but still left a fifty foot wide crater.

MSW

i would be willing to hazard that immediately following this incident, the the pilot got to try out his new job phrase

'ya want fries with that?

LWW Loc: Banana Republic of America

MSW wrote:

i would be willing to hazard that immediately following this incident, the the pilot got to try out his new job phrase

'ya want fries with that?

He was certainly removed from the CO's Christmas card list.

SteveR Loc: Michigan

LWW wrote:

In 1958 the UNITED STATES AIR FORCE accidentally dropped an atomic bomb in rural South Carolina. The weapon did not detonate but still left a fifty foot wide crater.

It was one heckuva good test of the safety protocols on that bomb, though.

Bridges Loc: Memphis, Charleston SC, now Nazareth PA

Beach front property would have been gotten at a steal if that thing had gone off!

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

On Dec. 3, 1958, I was inducted into the US Army - a day I will never forget. For me, as big a shock as the A-Bomb accidently dropped in SC.

Mark

Amielee Loc: Eastern Washington State

markngolf wrote:

On Dec. 3, 1958, I was inducted into the US Army - a day I will never forget. For me, as big a shock as the A-Bomb accidently dropped in SC.

Mark

The bombs nuclear core was stored elsewhere in the aircraft and not in the bomb. When it fell from 15,000 feet from the B-47E it struck a childs play house and the conventional explosive did go off. It blew a hole 75 feet wide and 35 feet deep in the ground and 3 children playing 200 yards from the site were injured, but not fatally.. The Air Force settled with the family for $54,000. The pilot of the aircraft had an indicator light go off showing that the bomb shackle locking pin was not engaged and called the bombardier to the bomb to check it. Upon reaching around the bomb he accidently hit the bomb release mechanism and the bomb dropped forcing the bomb bay doors open.

SteveR Loc: Michigan

Amielee wrote:

The bombs nuclear core was stored elsewhere in the... (show quote)

Was there a similar accident in which the core was in the bomb and five of six "pins" (?) necessary for detonation had engaged.

ecblackiii Loc: Maryland

This did not happen in December 1958. It was on March 11, 1958. The weapon, an Mark 6 atomic bomb, did not have its nuclear component installed. But the conventional explosives inside the bomb exploded on impact, destroying a children's playhouse in the woods near a house. The owners of the nearby house and four children were injured but survived.

smilenangler Loc: The Flood City, Pa.

Thank you for your service...

ponchod5

Doc Williams,

Unfortunately this has happened quite often. Oops!

SteveR Loc: Michigan

ecblackiii wrote:

This did not happen in December 1958. It was on March 11, 1958. The weapon, an Mark 6 atomic bomb, did not have its nuclear component installed. But the conventional explosives inside the bomb exploded on impact, destroying a children's playhouse in the woods near a house. The owners of the nearby house and four children were injured but survived.

The "I'll bet you didn't know" post is different from the "On this very day" post. The "I'll bet you didn't didn't know" are just a fun facts which aren't related to the current date. "On this very day," however," does contain specific facts related to the date. It's why there are two separate threads.

LWW Loc: Banana Republic of America

SteveR wrote:

The "I'll bet you didn't know" post is different from the "On this very day" post. The "I'll bet you didn't didn't know" are just a fun facts which aren't related to the current date. "On this very day," however," does contain specific facts related to the date. It's why there are two separate threads.

Thank you.

Vault Loc: Gig Harbor, WA and Yuma, AZ

Called "Broken Arrow". Trained alot for such an acurance. Sorry, classified.

SteveR Loc: Michigan

It's been 40 years since the Damascus Titan missile explosion which propelled the warhead outside the gate of the complex. I saw a documentary on this and it was a quite a thing. One of the techs servicing the missile died as a result.