Evening star., 1961-11-17
ICBM Is Fired
Underground;
SuccessHdiIed
'Minutemun Travels
5000 Miles From
Pit go Feet Deep


fire and smoke, an interconti-
mental range Minuteman missile
scored its first underground
launching success today. The
rocket vaulted from a 90-foot-
deep pit and raced to a target
area about 5000 miles away.
The success, announced by
the Air Force, advanced the
day when hundreds of Minute
men will be planted in hardened
underground silos capable of
surviving nuclear attack.
A rush of fire and smoke
erupted from the steel and con-
crete hole as the missiles pow
erful engines ignited. ,
The 58-foot projectile cleared
the pit in 2 seconds, quickly
darted through the smoke
clouds. and pitched toward the
southeast.
More Firings on Way
The second and third stages
fired as planned and propelled
the nose cone into a broad
bulls-eye area in the South
Atlantic Ocean. Pinpoint ac-
curacy was not a goal on this
first successful Silo firing.
The good flight signals a
stepup in the Minuteman test
flight program, with several
more firingS scheduled before
the end of the year.
The Air Force needed a sue
cessful flight to make up for
time lost when a Minuteman
exploded seconds after the
missiles first silo launching on
August 80.
The August failure was traced
to a spurious guidance system
signal which ignlted the second
stage as the missile cleared
the silo. The second stage is
intended to fire about a min
ute after launching.
Analysis of data also showed
the missile was affected slightly
by noise ricochetlng off the
sides of the silo. To remedy
this, the hole used today was
lined with a 3-inch thickness
of a substance resembling
acoustical tile.
Trajectory Firm
Before launching, the missile
rested on a automatically oper-
ated ring which hung suspended
on metallic straps II feet from
the bottom of the shaft. This
system will permit Minuteman
to remain pointed on its in
tended Trajectory even though
a nearby nuclear blast might
knock the silo slightly ajar.
Beneath the missile was a
huge flame deflector shaped
like a Mexican sombrero. This
throws the fiery exhaust up
ward. between the missile and
the silo walls, in a ring of
flame which causes no damage.
Major detectives of the test
were to determine how Minute
man withstands the furnishing
forces of an underground
launching.
On surface firings, destructive
heat, vibration and noise are
dissipated into the open air.
In a hole. these stresses COM
bine to buffet the missile Sc
verely, with temperature soar
ing to more than 5000 degrees
Fahrenheit.
Buildup Planned
Once Minuteman is opera
tional, the Defense Department
plans the biggest missile build
up in this Nations history. The
first three 50-missile squadronS
will be buried on the Montana
prairie. A total of 900 missiles
is planned for Western United
States bases by 1864, with Of
ficials considering an eventual
force of $500 Minutemen.
Once in place, the easily
stored and handled solid-fuel
weapons will be manned and
guarded only through remote
control. In an emergency, two
men in an underground control
center miles away could launch
all so rockets in a squadron in
minutes. The missiles will be
able to deliver nuclear war
head to targets up to $500
miles aWay.