Davy Crockett (nuclear device)
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Davy Crockett mounted to a recoilless rifle on a tripod |
The
M-388 Davy Crockett was a tactical
nuclear recoilless rifle projectile that was deployed by the
United States during the
Cold War. It was named for American
soldier,
Congressman and
folk hero Davy Crockett (1786-1836).
One of the smallest nuclear weapons ever fielded, the Davy Crockett was developed in the late
1950s for use against
Soviet troops in
West Germany. Small teams of the
Atomic Battle Group (charged with operating the device) would be stationed every few kilometers to guard against Soviet attack, using the power of their nuclear artillery shells to kill or incapacitate advancing troop formations and irradiate the area so that it was uninhabitable for up to 48 hours, long enough to mobilize NATO forces.
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U.S. officials view a Davy Crocket casing. |
The M-388 round used a version of the
W54 warhead, a very small sub-
kiloton fission device. The Mk-54 weighed about 51 lb (23 kg), with a selectable yield of 10 or 20 tons (very close to the minimum practical size and yield for a fission warhead). The complete round weighed 76 lb (34.5 kg). It was 31 in. (78.7 cm) long with a diameter of 11 in. (28 cm) at its widest point; a subcaliber piston at the back of the shell was actually inserted into the launcher's barrel for firing.
The Davy Crockett could be launched from either of two launchers: the 4-inch (120 mm)
M28, with a range of about 1.25 mi (2 km), or the 6-in (155 mm)
M29, with a range of 2.5 mi (4 km). Both weapons used the same projectile, and could be mounted on a tripod launcher or carried by truck or
armored personnel carrier. They were operated by a three-man crew.
Both recoilless rifles proved to have poor accuracy in testing, so the shell's greatest effect would have been its extreme
radiation hazard. Even at a low yield setting, the M388 would produce an almost instantly lethal radiation dosage (in excess of 10,000
rem) within 500 feet (150 m), and a probably fatal dose (around 600 rem) within a quarter mile (400 meters).
A common myth is that with no shielding or protection from either blast or radiation, a Davy Crockett crew would have been unlikely to survive any engagement, also claiming that the blast area of the warhead was greater than the range of the weapon. In fact, though the device could be fired to a dangerously short range by an inept crew, the maximum range of both versions is far longer than the distance at which dangerous direct radiation, thermal, shockwave/blast, or debris are likely to endanger the crew. At a range of as little as half of the maximum range for the 120mm version (1 kilometer) no ill effects are likely.
The warhead was tested on
July 7,
1962 in the
Little Feller II weapons effects test shot, and again in an actual firing of the Davy Crockett from distance of 1.7 miles (2.72 km) in the
Little Feller I test shot on
July 17. This was the last atmospheric test detonation at the
Nevada Test Site.
Production of the Davy Crockett began in
1956. 2,100 were produced. The weapon was deployed with U.S. Army forces from
1961 to
1971.
Versions of the W54 warhead were also used in the
Special Atomic Demolition Munition project and the
AIM-26A Falcon.
The Davy Crockett rocket made an appearance with both a nuclear and conventional payload in the
1962 movie King Kong vs Godzilla, even though the rocket system was still classified at the time. It was also featured (and used) in the
2004 video game Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater.
*
Nuclear weapon *
Nuclear artillery*
Nuclear weapon design*
Nuclear strategy*http://www.guntruck.com/DavyCrockett.html
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Facts about the "Davy Crockett" missile*
Characteristics of all US nuclear weapons designs*
Davy Crocketts in Southern Avenue of Fulda Gap*
Davy Crocketts during Oct 62 Cuban Crisis (Southern Avenue of Fulda Gap)
