DEFENDERS OF AMERICA from National Biscuit Company: U. S. ARMY EXPLORER I IN ORBIT

This is the final trading card I own from the Defenders of America series produced by the National Biscuit Company. Perhaps somewhere down the line someone who owns the full collection will upload them to a site. If they do, and provide me with a link, I will happily link to their site.

Click on either image to see it larger.

Seems appropriate to end with this item which depicts the first U. S. missile to send a satellite into space. In other words, I’m out of here.

Explorer 1 (1958 Alpha 1) was the first Earth satellite of the United States, launched as part of its participation in the International Geophysical Year. The mission followed the first two Earth satellites the previous year, the Soviet Union's Sputnik 1 and 2, beginning the Cold War Space Race between the two nations.

Explorer 1 was launched on January 31, 1958 at 22:48 Eastern Time (equal to February 1, 03:48 UTC) atop the first Juno booster from LC-26 at the Cape Canaveral Missile Annex, Florida. It was the first spacecraft to detect the Van Allen radiation belt, returning data until its batteries were exhausted after nearly four months. It remained in orbit until 1970, and has been followed by more than 90 scientific spacecraft in the Explorer series. (SOURCE: Wikipedia)

From NASA:

Explorer 1 was the first satellite launched by the United States when it was sent into space on January 31, 1958. Following the launch of the Soviet Union's Sputnik 1 on October 4, 1957, the U.S. Army Ballistic Missile Agency was directed to launch a satellite using its Jupiter C rocket developed under the direction of Dr. Wernher von Braun. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory received the assignment to design, build and operate the artificial satellite that would serve as the rocket's payload. JPL completed this job in less than three months.

The primary science instrument on Explorer 1 was a cosmic ray detector designed to measure the radiation environment in Earth orbit. Once in space this experiment, provided by Dr. James Van Allen of the University of Iowa, revealed a much lower cosmic ray count than expected. Van Allen theorized that the instrument may have been saturated by very strong radiation from a belt of charged particles trapped in space by Earth's magnetic field. The existence of these radiation belts was confirmed by another U.S. satellite launched two months later, and they became known as the Van Allen Belts in honor of their discoverer.

Explorer 1 revolved around Earth in a looping orbit that took it as close as 354 kilometers (220 miles) to Earth and as far as 2,515 kilometers (1,563 miles). It made one orbit every 114.8 minutes, or a total of 12.54 orbits per day. The satellite itself was 203 centimeters (80 inches) long and 15.9 centimeters (6.25 inches) in diameter. Explorer 1 made its final transmission on May 23, 1958. It entered Earth's atmosphere and burned up on March 31, 1970, after more than 58,000 orbits. The satellite weighed 14 kilograms (30.8 pounds).

A launch attempt of a similar satellite, Explorer 2, was made on March 5, 1958, but the fourth stage of the Jupiter-C rocket failed to ignite. Explorer 3 was successfully launched on March 26, 1958, and operated until June 16 of that year. Explorer 4 was launched July 26, 1958, and operated until October 6 of that year. Launch of Explorer 5 on August 24, 1958, failed when the rocket's booster collided with its second stage after separation, causing the firing angle of the upper stage to be incorrect. (SOURCE: NASA)

And for those old enough to remember watching the night sky in search of the early satellites, or for those who just remember the excitement of space exploration, I give you a truly bizarre hit song from 1962 performed by a British band known as The Tornados. Nod if you remember this. Then go hit your head against the wall if you remember listening to this on a transistor radio hidden under your pillow when you were supposed to be asleep.

DEFENDERS OF AMERICA from National Biscuit Company: U. S. ARMY HAWK MISSILE

By now, if you’ve been checking in to see what weapon of mass destruction I’m featuring, you know I generally give a little bit of information from Wikipedia regarding the history of the weapon/ship/plane. This time I’ll let you look here to read all about the U. S. Army Hawk Missile.




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Instead, I offer the following which may give you pause:

In 1965, it acquired Amana Refrigeration, Inc., a manufacturer of refrigerators and air conditioners. Using the Amana brand name and its distribution channels, Raytheon began selling the first countertop household microwave oven in 1967 and became a dominant manufacturer in the microwave oven business. (SOURCE: Wikipedia)

Wouldn't you have liked to see the salesman's catalogue?

"Well, if I can't interest you in one of our modern microwaves, would you be interested in one of our refurbished missiles? I could give you an excellent price if you buy a dozen."

Next time, the final nod to the military industrial complex…U. S. ARMY EXPLORER I IN ORBIT

DEFENDERS OF AMERICA from National Biscuit Company: U. S. ARMY MOHAWK TURBO-PROP AIRPLANE

This is card number 23 in the National Biscuit Company's (Nabisco) 1959 trading card series, Defenders of America. As I've said before, I do not have the complete series, just a few random cards.




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The Grumman OV-1 Mohawk is an armed military observation and attack aircraft, designed for battlefield surveillance and light strike capabilities. It is of twin turboprop configuration, and carried two crew members with side by side seating. The Mohawk was intended to operate from short, unimproved runways in support of United States Army maneuver forces

Development

The Mohawk began as a joint Army-Marine program through the then-Navy Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer), for an observation/attack plane that would outperform the Cessna L-19 Bird Dog. In June 1956, the Army issued Type Specificationn TS145, which called for the development and procurement of a two-seat, twin turboprop aircraft designed to operate from small, unimproved fields under all weather conditions. It would be faster, with greater firepower, and heavier armour than the Bird Dog, which had proved vulnerable during the Korean War. The Mohawk's mission would include observation, artillery spotting, air control, emergency resupply, naval target spotting, liaison, and radiological monitoring. The Navy specified that the aircraft must be capable of operating from small "jeep" escort class carriers (CVEs). The DoD selected Grumman Aircraft Corporation's G-134 design as the winner of the competition in 1957. Marine requirements contributed an unusual feature to the design. As originally proposed, the OF-1 could be fitted with water skis that would allow the aircraft to land at sea and taxi to island beaches at 20 kts. Since the Marines were authorized to operate fixed wing aircraft in the close air support (CAS) role, the mockup also featured underwing pylons for rockets, bombs, and other stores.

The Air Force did not like the armament capability of the Mohawk and tried to get it removed. The Marines did not want the sophisticated sensors the Army wanted, so when their Navy sponsors opted to buy a fleet oil tanker, they dropped from the program. The Army continued with armed Mohawks and developed cargo pods that could be dropped from underwing hard points to resupply troops in emergencies.

The radar imaging capability of the Mohawk was to prove a significant advance in both peace and war. The SLAR could look through foliage and map terrain, presenting the observer with a film image of the earth below only minutes after the area was scanned. In military operations, the image was split in two parts, one showing fixed terrain features, the other spotting moving targets.

The prototype (YAO-1AF) first flew on April 14, 1959. The OV-1 entered production in October 1959.

General characteristics

• Crew: Two: pilot, observer

• Length: 41 ft 0 in (12.50 m)

• Wingspan: 48 ft 0 in (14.63 m)

• Height: 12 ft 8 in (3.86 m)

• Wing area: 360 ft² (33.45 m²)

• Empty weight: 12,054 lb (5,467 kg)

• Loaded weight: 15,544 lb (7,051 kg) (Normal take-off weight, IR mission)

• Max. takeoff weight: 18,109 lb (8,214 kg) (SLAR mission)

• Powerplant: 2 × Lycoming T53-L-701 turboprops, 1,400 shp (1,044 kW) each

Performance

• Never exceed speed: 450 mph (390 knots, 724 km/h)

• Maximum speed: 305 mph (265 knots, 491 km/h) at 10,000 ft (3,050 m) (IR mission)

• Cruise speed: 207 mph (180 knots, 334 km/h) (econ cruise)

• Stall speed: 84 mph (73 knots, 135 km/h)

• Range: 944 mi (820 nmi, 1,520 km) (SLAR mission)

• Service ceiling:
25,000 ft (7,620 m)

• Rate of climb:
3,450 ft/min (17.5 m/s)

(SOURCE: Wikipedia)



Next time...U. S. Army Hawk Missile

DEFENDERS OF AMERICA from National Biscuit Company: X-15 ROCKET POWERED RESEARCH PLANE

Before you read about the X-15 I wanted to let you know you can see several vintage snapshots my father took of seaplanes in the late 1940s and early 50s by visiting my other site, Tattered and Lost Photographs.

And now...the X-15, courtesy of the National Biscuit Company late 1950s trading cards.




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The North American X-15 was a rocket-powered aircraft operated by the United States Air Force and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the X-plane series of experimental aircraft. The X-15 set speed and altitude records in the early 1960s, reaching the edge of outer space and returning with valuable data used in aircraft and spacecraft design. As of 2012, the X-15 holds the official world record for the fastest speed ever reached by a manned rocket-powered aircraft.
During the X-15 program, 13 different flights by eight pilots met the USAF spaceflight criteria by exceeding the altitude of 50 miles (80 km) thus qualifying the pilots for astronaut status. The USAF pilots qualified for USAF astronaut wings, while the civilian pilots were awarded NASA astronaut wings in 2005, 35 years after the last X-15 flight.
Of all the X-15 missions, two flights (by the same pilot) qualified as space flights per the international (Fédération Aéronautique Internationale) definition of a spaceflight by exceeding 100 kilometers (62.1 mi, 328,084 ft) in altitude.

General Characteristic

• Crew: one

• Length: 50 ft 9 in (15.45 m)

• Wingspan: 22 ft 4 in (6.8 m)

• Height: 13 ft 6 in (4.12 m)

• Wing area: 200 ft2 (18.6 m2)

• Empty weight: 14,600 lb (6,620 kg)

• Loaded weight: 34,000 lb (15,420 kg)

• Max. takeoff weight: 34,000 lb (15,420 kg)

• Powerplant: 1 × Thiokol XLR99-RM-2 liquid-fuel rocket engine, 70,400 lbf at 30 km (313 kN)

Performance

• Maximum speed: Mach 6.72 (4,520 mph, 7,274 km/h)

• Range: 280 mi (450 km)

• Service ceiling: 67 mi (108 km, 354,330 ft)

• Rate of climb: 60,000 ft/min (18,288 m/min)

• Wing loading: 170 lb/ft2 (829 kg/m2)

• Thrust/weight: 2.07

(SOURCE: Wikipedia)

Next time...U. S. Army Mohawk Turbo-Prop Airplane

DEFENDERS OF AMERICA from National Biscuit Company: USAF TM-61 MATADOR

Another in the series of the Military Industrial Complex of the 1950s brought to you by the National Biscuit Company. Would a company today put trading cards about weapons in cereal boxes? I'm sure if they thought it would earn them an extra buck they would.

It's frightening to think of the power that the defense companies have today. Most of the public isn't even aware of their power, nor do they care.

Let's face it, if less money had gone to build weapons and more spent on education we'd have a society better capable of understanding exactly what is going on. First and foremost should always be education.

I will now get off my political soapbox.

I give you the TM-61 Matador.




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The Martin MGM-1 Matador was the first operational surface-to-surface cruise missile built by the United States. It was similar in concept to the German V-1, but the Matador included a radio link that allowed in-flight course corrections. This allowed accuracy to be maintained over greatly extended ranges of just under 1000 km. To allow these ranges, the Matador was powered by a small turbojet engine in place of the V-1's much less efficient pulsejet.

When originally introduced, the Air Force referred to them as bombers, and assigned them the B-61 designation. It was later re-designated "TM-61", for "tactical missile", and finally "'MGM-1" when the US Department of Defence introduced the Joint Designation System in 1963. (SOURCE: Wikipedia)

The only President I have ever seen in person was Dwight D. Eisenhower in a parade in Hawaii. He rode in a black convertible with the crowds standing very close.

A vital element in keeping the peace is our military establishment. Our arms must be mighty, ready for instant action, so that no potential aggressor may be tempted to risk his own destruction...

This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influence — economic, political, even spiritual — is felt in every city, every statehouse, every office of the federal government. We recognize the imperative need for this development. Yet we must not fail to comprehend its grave implications. Our toil, resources and livelihood are all involved; so is the very structure of our society. In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.

We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals so that security and liberty may prosper together.

—President of the United States (and former General of the Army) Dwight D. Eisenhower, Farewell Address to the Nation on January 17, 1961

To see other cards in this trading card series click on the "Defenders of America" label below the post.

Next time...X-15 Rocket Powered Research Plane

DEFENDERS OF AMERICA from National Biscuit Company: USAF IM-99 BOMARC

This is number 10 in the 1959 series of trading cards National Biscuit Company gave away in boxes of cereal. However, I have another number 10 that is either older or you know...younger. I have no idea.




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Origins and Development of the BOMARC Missile

In 1946, Boeing started to study surface-to-air guided missiles under the United States Army Air Forces project MX-606. By 1950, Boeing had launched more than 100 test rockets in various configurations, all under the designator XSAM-A-1 GAPA (Ground-to-Air Pilotless Aircraft). Because these tests were very promising, Boeing received a USAF contract in 1949 to develop a pilotless interceptor (a term then used by the USAF for air-defense guided missiles) under project MX-1599. The MX-1599 missile was to be a ramjet-powered, nuclear-armed long-range surface-to-air missile to defend the Continental United States from high-flying bombers. The Michigan Aerospace Research Center (MARC) was added to the project soon afterward, and this gave the new missile its name Bomarc (for Boeing and MARC). In 1951, the USAF decided to emphasize its point of view that missiles were nothing else than pilotless aircraft by assigning aircraft designators to its missile projects, and anti-aircraft missiles received F-for-Fighter designations. The Bomarc became the F-99.

Test flights of XF-99 test vehicles began in September 1952 and continued through early 1955. The XF-99 tested only the liquid-fueled booster rocket, which would accelerate the missile to ramjet ignition speed. In February 1955, tests of the XF-99A propulsion test vehicles began. These included live ramjets, but still had no guidance system or warhead. The designation YF-99A had been reserved for the operational test vehicles. In August 1955, the USAF discontinued the use of aircraft-like type designators for missiles, and the XF-99A and YF-99A became XIM-99A and YIM-99A, respectively. Originally the USAF had allocated the designation IM-69, but this was changed (possibly at Boeing's request to keep number 99) to IM-99 in October 1955. In October 1957, the first YIM-99A production-representative prototype flew with full guidance, and succeeded to pass the target within destructive range. In late 1957, Boeing received the production contract for the IM-99A Bomarc A interceptor missile, and in September 1959, the first IM-99A squadron became operational. 

The IM-99A had an operational radius of 200 miles (~320 km) and was designed to fly at Mach 2.5–2.8 at a cruising altitude of 60,000 feet (18.3 km). It was 46.6 ft (14.2 m) long and weighed 15,500 lb (7,020 kg). Its armament was either a 1,000 pound (455 kg) conventional warhead or a W40 nuclear warhead (7–10 kiloton yield). A liquid fuelled rocket engine boosted the Bomarc to Mach 2, when its Marquardt RJ43-MA-3 ramjet engines, fueled by 80-octane gasoline, would take over for the remainder of the flight.

Operational Service and Retirement

Within a year of becoming operational, a Bomarc-A with a nuclear warhead caught fire at McGuire AFB on 7 June 1960 following the explosive rupture of its onboard helium tank. While the missile's explosives didn't detonate, the heat melted the warhead, releasing plutonium which the fire crews then spread around. The Air Force and the Atomic Energy Commission cleaned up the site and covered it with concrete; fortunately, this was the only major incident involving the weapons system. The site remained in operation for several years following the fire, but after its closure in 1972, the accident resulted in that area remaining off limits to the present day, primarily due to low levels of plutonium contamination. In 2002, the concrete at the site was removed and transported to Lakehurst Naval Air Station for railheading to a site for proper disposal.

In 1962 the Air Force started using modified A-models as drones; following the October 1962 tri-service redesignation of aircraft and weapons systems they became CQM-10As. Otherwise the air defense missile squadrons maintained alert while making regular trips to Santa Rosa Island for training and firing practice. After the inactivation of the 4751st ADW(M) on 1 July 1962 and transfer of Hurlburt to Tactical Air Command for air commando operations the 4751st Air Defense Squadron (Missile) remained at Hurlburt and Santa Rosa Island for training purposes.

In 1964, the liquid-fueled Bomarc-A sites and squadrons began to be deactivated. The sites at Dow and Suffolk County closed first. The remainder soldiered on for several more years while the government started dismantling the air defense missile network. Niagara Falls was the first BOMARC B installation to close, in December 1969; the others remained on alert through 1972. In April 1972, the last Bomarc B in USAF service was retired at McGuire and the 46th ADMS inactivated.

The Bomarc, designed to intercept relatively slow manned bombers, had become a useless asset in the era of the intercontinental ballistic missile. The remaining Bomarc missiles were used by all armed services as high-speed target drones for tests of other air-defense missiles. The Bomarc A and Bomarc B targets were designated as CQM-10A and CQM-10B, respectively.

Notably, due to the accident the McGuire complex has never been sold or converted to other uses and remains in Air Force ownership, making it the most intact site of the eight in the United States. It has been nominated to the National Register of Historic Sites. Although a number of IM-99/CIM-10 Bomarcs have been placed on public display, concerns about the possible environmental hazards of the thoriated magnesium structure of the airframe have resulted in several being removed from public view.
(SOURCE: Wikipedia)

To see other cards in this trading card series click on the "Defenders of America" label below the post.

Next time...USAF TM-61 Matador

DEFENDERS OF AMERICA from National Biscuit Company: GUIDED MISSLE SUBMARINE POLARIS SSG(N)

Today's card is number 4 in the series of Defenders of America trading cards published by the National Biscuit Company in the late 1950s.

The first US Navy submarine capable of firing a strategic ballistic Polaris missile was the George Washington, a nuclear sub. Earlier submarines had carried strategic missiles, but the boats had been diesel powered, and the missiles required the boat to surface in order to fire. The missiles were also cruise missiles, which were vulnerable to the defenses of the day in a way that ballistic missiles were not.

George Washington's missiles could be fired while the boat was submerged, meaning that it was far less likely to be detected before firing. The nuclear power of the boat also meant that, like Nautilus, George Washington's patrol length was limited only by the amount of food the boat could carry. Ballistic missile submarines, carrying Polaris missiles, eventually superseded all other strategic nuclear systems in the USN. Deterrent patrols continue to this day, although now with Ohio-class submarines and Trident II missiles. (SOURCE: Wikiepdia)

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To see other cards in this trading card series click on the "Defenders of America" label below the post.

Next time...USAF IM-99 Bomarc Missile

DEFENDERS OF AMERICA from National Biscuit Company: USS TRITON

I have eight trading cards called Defenders of America that were issued by the National Biscuit Company (changed to Nabisco in 1971) in the late 1950s. I have no idea where I got them. Most likely my best friend gave them to me.

The cards were given away inside boxes of Nabisco cereal. I found these two images of the package advertising online at The Imaginary World site.

There were twenty-four cards in the series. Over the next few posts I'll show you the eight I have.

This is card number 3 in the series.




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USS Triton (SSRN/SSN-586), a United States Navy nuclear-powered radar picket submarine, was the first vessel to execute a submerged circumnavigation of the Earth (Operation Sandblast), doing so in early 1960. Triton accomplished this objective during her shakedown cruise while under the command of Captain Edward L. "Ned" Beach, Jr. The only member of her class, she also had the distinction of being the only Western submarine powered by two nuclear reactors. 

Triton was the second submarine and the fifth ship of the United States Navy to be named for the Greek god Triton. At the time of her commissioning in 1959, Triton was the largest, most powerful, and most expensive submarine ever built, at $109 million excluding the cost of nuclear fuel and reactors.

After operating for only two years in her designed role, Triton's role as a radar picket submarine was made obsolete by the introduction of the carrier-based Grumman WF-2 Tracer airborne early warning aircraft. Converted to an attack submarine in 1962, she became the flagship for the Commander Submarine Forces U.S. Atlantic Fleet (COMSUBLANT) in 1964. She was decommissioned in 1969, the first U.S. nuclear submarine to be taken out of service.

Triton's hull was moored at the St. Julien's Creek Annex of Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Virginia as part of the reserve fleet until 1993, though she was struck from the Naval Vessel Register in 1986. In 1993, she was towed to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard to await the Nuclear Powered Ship and Submarine Recycling Program. The former Triton landed on the keel resting blocks in the drydock basin on 1 October 2007 to begin this recycling process which was completed effective 30 November 2009. (SOURCE: Wikipedia)

To read more about the design, construction and operational history click here.

Next time...U. S. Navy Guided Missile Submarine Polaris.