The Ballistic Missile and SAC (1959)

1959 USAF production served the purpose of providing ballistic missile orientation to Strategic Air Command officers, plus easing fears of those officers who were entering this new and unknown career field.

[@stargazerken73]

I have both this film and "Thor: the IRBM" on DVD as part of a collection put out by Spacecraft Films. I love watching them and learning the history of our booster and ballistic missile projects.

[@sidv4615]

What's your favourite?

[@rapman5363]

The world has never seen a force like SAC at its prime.

[@markwilliams8488]

Truth.

[@yakacm]

I know, no other organisation has ever lost so many thermonuclear devices, Yuba City, Goldsboro, Palomares, Thule, to name a few.

[@randy109]

Even though we built very few of them, the Titan II was the USA's earliest "heavy" ICBM. It had the B53, 9 Megaton Warhead which was classified at the time as a "Bunker Buster". Yep, 9MT should "bust most bunkers"...

[@augdog1230]

I remember playing the old game Scorched Earth. The large nuke that wiped out half the playing area? That was the B53.

[@sidv4615]

it would bust more than some bunkers ;)

[@sidv4615]

@@augdog1230 how long ago did you play that game?

[@augdog1230]

@@sidv4615 Many years ago, early 1990s. MS-DOS and floppy discs.

[@MatthewLittle]

And to think, most of these ballistic missiles - Atlas, Titan, etc. - would later be re-purposed and used in both space exploration and manned spaceflight operations....

[@j.mangum7652]

3:25 & 28:47 " GET OUT.....sir!"

[@TheMaxx111]

They are all driving classic cars!

[@KiloByte69]

They weren't classic when this was made!

[@Zoomer30]

The guy holding the door asked for a transfer after standing there for 20 minutes.

[@Zoomer30]

SAC meets Smokey and the Bandit. "Jack Rabbit, this is Big Boy"

[@amandagiannini3503]

good days no whining women for the most part in the military

[@embracedmadness]

A woman would’ve come in handy back then while sitting in a missile bunker, bored AF.

[@timtim8468]

What a waste.

[@davidmurphy8190]

Nearly all ATLAS, TITAN I, and TITAN II boosters were reused as boosters for other tasks, many for satellite launches or space missions for NASA.

[@d.cypher2920]

This is so amazing, compared to civilian technology available in 1959... *makes one ponder what there is availed to our awesome military organizations today that we know nothing about.* And, makes one a bit nervous i believe... I'm glad I live in the USA, that's for sure. ☀️😎☀️🇺🇸

[@edwalker2169]

Absolutely magnificent quality transfer, thank you so much!

[@dancraggs]

I thought the quality was awful! The flickering gave me a headache.

[@johnparker4538]

Amazing video of the liquid fuelled atlas missile days.

[@davidmurphy8190]

Most of the imagery uses film footage of the SM-65 “D”model ICBM on the early “soft” launch sites. E and F models had successively hardened sites.

[@davidmurphy8190]

ATLAS E and F variants would be fueled once they were lifted into their launch positions. The E variant was contained in a coffin launcher. The F variant was stored vertically, elevated out of the ground, fueled, and launched.