Tuesday, February 11, 2014

The U.S. Did Develop Nuclear 'Suitcase Bombs' Albeit They Were Put On Backpacks

U.S. officials examine a M-388 Davy Crockett nuclear weapon. It used the smallest nuclear warhead ever developed by the United States. Wikipedia

When Elite US forces Strapped Nukes To Their Backs -- Adam Rawnsley and David Brown, Stars and Stripes/Foreign Policy

WASHINGTON — As Capt. Tom Davis stands at the tailgate of the military cargo plane, the night air sweeps through the hold. His eyes search the black terrain 1,200 feet below. He grips the canvas of his reserve parachute and takes a deep breath.

Davis and the men who make up his Special Forces A-team are among the most highly trained soldiers in the U.S. Army. It's 1972, and Davis isn't far removed from a tour in Vietnam, where he operated along the Cambodian border. His communications sergeant served in Command and Control North, which was responsible for some of the most daring operations in the heart of North Vietnamese territory. But none of the men has ever been on a mission like this before.

Their plan: drop into Eastern Europe, make their way undetected through forested mountains, and destroy a heavy-water plant used in the manufacture of nuclear weapons.

Read more ....

My Comment: A fascinating story. The yield of these miniaturized nuclear devices was only one kiloton .... but one kiloton in the middle of a major city can cause enormous damage.

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