Evening star., 1961-02-17
BY WILLIAM HINES
star Science Writer

6Y W1k4AAkAIA xA41NG0
star Science Writer
SEATTLE-Engineers a ne
technicianS here are checking
out a most unusual launching
pad which soon will go intt
operation at the other end o.
the country, at Cape Canaveral
Fla.
Unlike any pad ever seer
before, this one is q slightly
observation-disclosures railroad
car. Containing everything fol
q launching, including th'
countdown apparatus, the ca
is an integral part OF th'
Minuteman ICBM weapon
system.
When Minuteman is fun!
operational a few years from
now, the Air Force expect
dozens or hundreds Of thes'
mobile launching pads to be OF
railroad tracks throughout tn
country. They will be the land
based equivalent Of the mobile
elusive Polaris submarine fleet
The story of the launching
car and how 1t got to Seattl'
is a good example of q phenom
enon going on all over tn
Nation, the mobilizing Of indus
trial resources in the interest,"
OF national security.
Key man" in the Minute
man picture is the Boeing Air
plane Co., at whose head
quarters here the railroad ca
was delivered about a week ago
Boeing is assembly and tes
contractor for Minute m a n
which was first tested fully
and successfully-at Canavera
ON February /.
The car itself was made b!
ACF Industries, Inc, at Ber
wick, Pa. American Machine 4
Foundry Co. was In the desigl
and development work on tn
car along with ACF. They sen
their finished product via raj
TO Seattle for checkout and &C
ceptance by Boeing, who mus
certify to the Air Force tina
the car Is suitable for tes
launching use at the Cape.
Electronics, which jam on
end Of the launching car, cam
from . variety Of sources 81
over the country.
Hardly less diverse than tn
perenthood Of the car was tn
ancestry Of the missile 1t !
designed to carry and launch
The first, second and thir'
stages, respectively, OF tn
.three-stase rocket were mad
by Thiokol Chemical Co., Aero
rjet-General Division Of tn
General Tire Co., and the Her
ycules Powder Co. The re-entr
vehicle which will carry tn
rockets nuclear warhead an
protect the bomb on the wa
back into the atmosphere, wa
smade by Ayco Corp.
AutoneticS Division Of Mort
sAmerican Aviation, Inc, bui
the guidance which is suppose
TO speed Minutemen 5000 mile
ito its target. Boeing itself bui
an instrument section betwee
the warhead and the thir
stage; "interstage sections" be
tween each Of the other stage
and the skirt at the base OF tn
vehicle. In addition, the Seat
tie firm assembled and teste
the rocket.
Size Restricted
The big launch car had t
, be built big enough on the in
side to hold q Minuteman, bu
small enough on the outsid
to comply with the railroad
length, width and height reg
ulations. Eventually the missil
is to be transportable in
sC-l33 Cargomaster airplane, G
kdisassembled, in a convoy G
several small. medium an
large trucks.
Minuteman Is a rather dell
scate bird despite its size. It
especially susceptible to shoe
as well as to quick changes l
temperature. The ACF = AM
railroad car is said to b
s"shockproof," with special ba'
rancing and cushioning. One Q
Boeing's jobs now Is to see
fthe car comes UP to desigl
standards in this regard.
COntainer Plan Begun
C-133 experts have warne
that the natural flexing OF a
airplane's fuselage in figh
might be disastrous to Minute
man unless steps were taken I
hold the rocket steady an
guard against either shocks {
Temperature changes. Boein
thinks the answer lies in some
thing called MCAT-pro
nounced NC at. initials fc
missile Container-Air Trans
.portation."
Contracts for the Meat al
on the point Of being let. The
call for a rigid. internally sup
ported, light container, prob
ably of Fiberglas. This will Civ
the missile a protective envi
ronment which will enable
to be flown even in non-pres
surized planes.
Some authorities question tn
actual need for flying Minute
men. But ground mobility #
Minuteman is universally con
ceded q place in the defens
mix"
Recently dummy trains hav
been cruising the Wester
States to pick out suitable sid
eings as potential Minutema
sites, and to test the efficienc