"Some people feel that the missile had a little bit of a bad omen, if you will.". Theres a unique history surrounding Little Rock, Arkansas that you may not know about. Titan Ranch, located at 23 Missile Base Road in Vilonia, Arkansas, offers renters the chance to spend a night underground in a converted intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) facility. I enjoyed a cup of coffee in the master suite thanks to the in-room coffee bar and read a few more chapters. They would meet at the Air Force base in the morning and drive to the missile launch control silo to begin their work day. Is Russias Only Aircraft Carrier Cursed? (Not coincidentally, the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee at the time the missiles were installed was Arkansas Democrat Wilbur Mills.) On September 19, 1980, a second tragedy struck the 308th Strategic Missile Wing. Unsettling as that history may be, its worth it just to say you did it. An airman dropped a wrench socket and it fell 80 feet and pierced the thin skin of the rockets first stage fuel tank. which pertains to intellectual property restrictions (e.g., copyright and Construction on the Minuteman II structures began in 1946. President Ronald Reagan announced the retirement of the Titan II program, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. The Pentagon plans to spend $264 billion on its next-generation ICBM program, which . Follow us on Twitter to get the latest on the world's hidden wonders. During the next year, the other 18 missile silos in central Arkansas received ICBMs, and Jan. 1, 1964, all silos in Arkansas were active and on alert status. They were used to launch satellites into space as recently as 2003. Entering the next space, where the computers and control units would have been, you can still see the places on the floor where the desks with the key slots sat when it was an active site. He was a 19-year-old missile technician, a new trainee, riding with another guy, David Powell, who was showing Plumb the ropes. In the silo, they have a close-up view of the missile from less than ten feet away. The 390th Strategic Missile Wing, headquartered at Davis-Monthan AFB, Tucson, was active from 1962-84 and had command of the 18 sites in Southern Arizona. 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However, thanks to the ingenuity and tenacity of one person with a unique determination, one of those missile sites have been renovated into a luxury rental that you can stay in! About a half-mile down the road, Sgts. We hurriedly put our food away, closed the hatchback and put some distance between ourselves and the pasture. October 18, 2021. Jan 14, 2020. These missiles had a range of 5,500 miles, but they required a high level of upkeep. This photograph is considered public domain and has been cleared for release. The four men at the silo were blown off their feet. They all knew each other. The elderly man behind the counter was a dead ringer for the man lying on a gurney in the movie Young Frankenstein who Gene Wilder, Dr. Frankenstein, assaults unintentionally while instructing a group of medical students. An eye-opening journey through the history, culture, and places of the culinary world. Please try viewing this website in Edge, Mozilla, Chrome, or another modern browser. And Mondale then refused to confirm or deny when he was asked about it at the state convention. .css-v1xtj3{display:block;font-family:FreightSansW01,Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-weight:100;margin-bottom:0;margin-top:0;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-v1xtj3:hover{color:link-hover;}}@media(max-width: 48rem){.css-v1xtj3{font-size:1.1387rem;line-height:1.2;margin-bottom:1rem;margin-top:0.625rem;}}@media(min-width: 40.625rem){.css-v1xtj3{line-height:1.2;}}@media(min-width: 48rem){.css-v1xtj3{font-size:1.18581rem;line-height:1.2;margin-bottom:0.5rem;margin-top:0rem;}}@media(min-width: 64rem){.css-v1xtj3{font-size:1.23488rem;line-height:1.2;margin-top:0.9375rem;}}Why Russian Hybrid Warfare Failed in Ukraine, Meet the E-7 Wedgetail, the Air Forces New Plane, Report: Pilot Error Ruined a $112 Million F-35 Jet. Rachel Silva, who organized the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program's history walk Sept. 12, shows a photo of a typical missile control room during a tour on the site of the 1980 missile . "Thank you" will n, We were so proud to be awarded New Boston's Busine, Do you have home improvements planned for this spr, Were counting down the days until the Arkansas, Congratulations to Lairie Kincaid on his well-dese, SAU Trap Team Takes Top Prize at 3rd Annual South Arkansas Outdoor Social, Farmers Bank & Trust Announces NCAA Name, Image, Likeness Student-Athletes, Farmers Bank Foundation Grants $125,000 to the Hope Public Schools, Farmers Bank & Trust to Acquire Community First Trust Company, Farmers Bank & Trust Opens New Full-Service Branch in Bryant, AR, Farmers Bank & Trust Opens New Full-Service Branch in Paris, TX, AR Governor appoints Chris Gosnell to Arkansas Economic Development Council, Prescott Donation to Benefit Families in Need, Shark Teeth in the Sulphur River? God, help me! The incident began with a fuel leak at 6:30 p.m. on September 18, and culminated with the explosion at around 3:00 a.m. on September 19, ejecting the warhead from its silo. Tim Giago, an Oglala Lakota, is the editor and publisher of Native Sun News. The former disaster took far more lives, but the Damascus explosion posed a far greater potential threat because the missile was armed with its warhead at the time. They told of groping around in total darkness, hearing the screams of co-workers: "Men were screaming and crying. The blaze occurred while the 750-ton silo lid was closed, which contributed to a reduced oxygen level for the men who survived the initial fire. For us, there were two, queen size beds set up for my children. You don't know who you were killing. Extremist groups like to destroy cities. On Aug. 9, 1965, a fire and the resulting loss of oxygen in a silo near Searcy, Arkansas, killed 53 people, most of them civilian repairmen doing maintenance on the facility. The military continued to use Titan rockets as part of its intercontinental ballistic missile program through the 1980s, and this was not the only dramatic incident involving them. 2023 Atlas Obscura. Further, any commercial or non-commercial use of this photograph or any other Also some used to be in Arkansasthe Titan or Atlas missilesuntil one blew its fuel loadbecause of a dropped wrenchand threw its payload quite a distance. The Titan missile silo disasters. "The nuclear warhead landed about 100 feet from the launch complex's entry gate; its safety features operated correctly and prevented any loss of radioactive material. The North Star Missile Silo was used during the height of the Cold War in the early 1960s and is up for sale, with a price tag of $989,000. The Titan II missiles were the largest intercontinental ballistic missiles ever developed. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The second missile silo field is located 380 kilometers (240 miles) northwest of the Yumen field near the prefecture-level city of Hami in Eastern Xinjiang. Visitors to the site first descend down the 50 feet to a concrete pad, where they are greeted by the first of two 6,000-pound blast doors, one of which was kept closed at all times during the Cold War. All too soon, it was time to check out. We drove past these remnants of the cold war toward Brush, Colorado where we intended to stop at a small lake near Brush just off of the highway and have our picnic. I never knew we were so close to a pasture filled with grazing cattle, and where there is an abundance of cattle there is an abundance of cow pies and where there are cow pies there is an abundance of flies. (February 2011) Air-to-air missiles. Investigations including a congressional inquiry delved into the Damascus tragedy. [1][15][16] A documentary film titled Command and Control from director Robert Kenner, based on Schlosser's book, was released on January 10, 2017. DoD image must be made in compliance with guidance found at Visitors actually drive over the top of the former missile silo on their way to the LCC. Heres what the terrifying incident was like, from those who were there. In southeastern Wyoming, portions of the silo field are . Created with Sketch. The silos launch door was propelled over 600 feet from the launch complex. At about 6:30 p.m. Sept. 18, 1980, an airman working on the missile dropped a wrench socket, which fell 80 feet before hitting and piercing the rocket's first-stage fuel tank, causing a leak, but not an immediate explosion. From there, we watched a video all about the missile base, the history, and the long and difficult renovation. Gear-obsessed editors choose every product we review. Three of the Arkansas launch sites--in White, Van Buren, and Faulkner counties--have been placed on the National Register of Historic Places. He started the radio station after his previous employer, Dogpatch, a Li'l Abner theme park, went belly-up. The large underground facility at Kirtland AFB in Albuquerque, New "If we built rooms, it would kind of take away from it.". He was also the station manager and news reporter. First Security Bank, Member FDIC. [1] It focused on the explosion, as well as other Broken Arrow incidents during the Cold War. It was the loudest explosion Id ever heard in my lifebefore or since, Devlin says. The newly formed 308th Strategic Missile Wing oversaw the operation of 18 missile sites, manned by groups of four soldiers 24 hours a day. [2], Kennedy, initially praised as a hero, later received an official letter of reprimand for his first entry into the complex, as it later transpired that he had disregarded an order to stay away. Taxi from niagara falls ny to canada. The last active duty Titan II silo, she went off alert 5/5/87: 373-9 This site is currently for sale for $85K according to www.missilebases.com: 373-7 "The Four Side" Mark Christ set the stage: "Senior Airman David Livingston and Sergeant Jeff K. Kennedy then entered the launch complex early on the morning of Sept. 19 to get readings on airborne fuel concentrations, which they found to be at their maximum. Before the unit inactivated, a Mark VI re-entry vehicle from the last Titan II ICBM on alert status in Strategic Air Command was dedicated in Heritage Park. At about 3 a.m., the two men returned to the surface to await further instructions. Theres a real risk right now. Theyd heard on the scanner there was something going on at Missile Complex 374-7, the Titan II Missile installation in nearby Damascus. Nuclear weapons are just ideal for that., The next nuclear bomb to go off will not be delivered by a missile. Jimmy Roberts and Donald Green saw the explosion. One can visualize men in uniform going about their business far below the surface of the earth, manning and maintaining the silos with their guided missiles armed with nuclear warheads smack in the middle of Colorado while cattle graze peacefully just outside of the wire fences enclosing the silos. On September 19, 1980, a second tragedy struck the 308th Strategic Missile Wing. A look inside Level 2 of the Titan Ranch in Vilonia, a decommissioned Titan II nuclear missile facility, featuring two-queen sized beds and a spiral staircase. From Level 2, visitors may climb a spiral staircase to Level 1which previously served as the crew's sleeping quarters and kitchen or descend to Level 3, which housed the communication equipment that kept the facility connected to the larger world. "When power failed in the launch duct," Mark Christ has noted, "the air-conditioning turned off, raising temperatures in the silo and creating conditions that could lead to an explosion of the oxidizer within the missile, which had a boiling point of 70 degrees." President Reagan announced plans to retire the Titan II program in September 1981, only one year after the Damascus disaster. [5], A 1988 television film, Disaster at Silo 7, is based on this event. The complexes were grouped together in missile fields. The high water table in Arkansas meant that without regular maintenance the bottom of the facility was prone to flood with groundwater. Consider supporting our work by becoming a member for as little as $5 a month. GT has renovated the second level to be a multipurpose space, complete with projectors, a sound system, party lights, multiple whiteboards, and tables and chairs if needed. They were given codes on paper, to be confirmed by the crew in place for a changeover, and the paper was burned. Titan Ranch missile control center comes with a full kitchen, stocked with drinks refrigerator, and a massive projector equipped with multiple movie streaming options along with some saved movies. What you may not know is that at one time, there were 18 ICBM (intercontinental nuclear missile) silos surrounding the Little Rock area. If you need to flag this entry as abusive. "You didn't know if it was going to Cuba or if it was going to Moscow," Hill said. Early in the morning of Friday, September 19, a two-man PTS investigation team consisting of Senior Airman David Lee Livingston and Sergeant Jeff K. Kennedy entered the silo. file size: 5 MB. "You could dump dynamite in the bottom, light it off, and these doors would just keep on going," Hill said. Livingston died of his injuries [later] that day." Because their vapor detectors indicated an explosive atmosphere, the two were ordered to evacuate. A projector turns the far wall into a giant screen for movies or events, and a raised platform creates a bar area and kitchen space overlooking the floor along the other wall. The silos were of necessity deep, about 150 feet. It took a while to locate the nine-megaton nuclear warhead in the dark and gloom; it was still intact and not leaking. Like Atlas Obscura and get our latest and greatest stories in your Facebook feed. He Ended Up With A Titan Ii Missile Silo That Was Decommissioned In Spring Of 1986. The land is now under private ownership. Founder, Native American Journalists Association. Possibly a fuel leak. The triad, along with assigned . Be sure to fill out all the fields in order to have yours selected. The following is a list of active missiles of the United States military. "Then there was the water.". Arkansas was home to 18 Titan II ICBMs in a missile field located north of Conway. His 4-year-old great-granddaughter held the calf in the passenger seat, trying to hug it back to . A welder accidentally hit a hydraulic fluid line with his welding rod, which sparked a fire that quickly filled the missile shaft and sucked the oxygen out. Missile nosecones from Titan IIs in Arkansas are dismantled. I retreated upstairs to enjoy the incredible shower in the master suite and stayed up entirely too late reading a book in bed. The missile survived the fires and was not damaged. Whiteman Air Force Base (AFB) was headquarters for the 510th Strategic Missile Squadron of the 351st Strategic Missile Wing, consisting of 150 Minuteman II Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) silos and 15 launch control facilities spread over 14 counties of west central Missouri . 40 Years Ago, We Almost Blew Up Arkansas. 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. The team started running the procedure for readying the missile for liftoff. The united states built many missile silos in the midwest, away from populated areas. Kimberly S. Mitchell loves journeys, real or imagined. Powell was working on a Titan II missile fitted with a thermonuclear warhead, tucked away underground in Damascus, Arkansas. In his official statement in the investigation, Kennedy said it didnt make sense: Why would you energize an electrical circuit in a fuel leak? Livingston flipped the switch and then came topside. Titan Ranch, located just northeast of Conway, Arkansas, is one of these nuclear missile bases. His book Children Left Behind was awarded the Bronze Medal by Independent Book Publishers. That's a multimillion dollar project to do anything with it," he said. Should the missile need to be fired in anger, launch instructions would indicate that either Target 1, Target 2, or Target 3 was in the crosshairs; the men firing the ICBMs never knew what the targets actually were. The nitrogen tetroxide is kept in a second tank in the rocket's first stage, directly above the fuel tank and below the second stage and its nine-megaton W-53 nuclear warhead. We were so used to it that it didnt scare us.. Driving up to the ranch, you would never guess that youre headed to an underground missile silo. Delta- 09 was believed to be assigned the name "Cassandra's Missile . The Damascus incident was front page news for at least a few days. This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. After finally reaching Limon we discovered that two of the three motels in town had shut down and the only one open, the KS Motel, was it. On Feb. 6, 1963, the first Titan II intercontinental ballistic missile assigned to the 308th Strategic Missile Wing at Little Rock Air Force Base arrived. We didnt want to leave, but I understand why they wanted us to leave.. Many were built in Colorado, Nebraska, South Dakota, and North Dakota. While renovating, GT decided to put in a spiral staircase to save space and it adds to the industrial ambiance. The site was closed, and President Ronald Reagan chose to retire the Titan II missile program, announcing his decision a year after the Damascus Titan II missile explosion. They stood 103 feet tall and had a range of 9,300 miles. Crews of four men would work 24-hour shifts, followed by 24 hours off. [11], The launch complex was never repaired. Launch Complex 374-7 was located in Bradley Township, Van Buren County farmland just 3.3 miles (5.3km) NNE of Damascus, and approximately 50 miles (80km) north of Little Rock.[3][4]. It's time for your real estate portfolio to go ballistic! Reports in the Arkansas Gazette described the devastation: "The inside of the 155-foot-deep silo was reduced to rubble and its concrete doors which weigh 740 tons were blown to pieces. To this day, those Titan II targets remain classified, he said. "It was designed to remain intact enough to retaliate if necessary.". She has hiked the Inca Trail, walked into Panama on a rickety wooden bridge and once missed the last train of the night in Paris and walked several miles home (with friends). The Titan II's earth-shattering payload was 30 times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II. https://www.dimoc.mil/resources/limitations, The Titan II missile was the tallest ICBM used by the U.S. military. The missile silo itself is one of the few remaining atlas f silos that is naturally dry, with many interior levels and crib structure. Little Rock, Conway, Searcy, Benton, Heber Springs, Fayetteville, Bentonville, Springdale, Fort Smith, Jonesboro, West Memphis, Batesville, Mountain View, Hot Springs, Pine Bluff, Texarkana, Arkadelphia. Perhaps most famously, as the investigative journalist Eric Schlosser recounts in his book Command and Control . These sites in Springhill in Faulkner County, Southside in Van Buren County and Center Hill in White County are now on the National Register of Historic Places. regarding use of images of identifiable personnel, appearance of endorsement, and related matters. As was the case with the Pangburn disaster, the explosion at the Damascus launch site resulted from routine maintenance work. A piece of Cold War history is now available as an Airbnb property.. Titan Ranch, located at 23 Missile Base Road in Vilonia, Arkansas, offers renters the chance to spend a night underground in a converted intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) facility.The facility was one of 18 underground Titan II missile silos in Arkansas that helped form the backbone of the United States' nuclear . This time, Livingston and Kennedy went down. While the warhead inside the rocket remained in one piece, preventing a nuclear disaster, the crew working on the site did not escape without harm: One man died and more than 20 others were injured. The W53 thermonuclear warhead landed about 100 feet (30m) from the launch complex's entry gate.
