The Unauthorized Movement of Nuclear Weapons and Mistaken Shipment of Classified Missile Components: An Assessment
Abstract
On August 31, 2007, a U.S. Air Force B-52 plane with the call sign Doom 99 took off from Minot Air Force Base (AFB), North Dakota, inadvertently loaded with six Advanced Cruise Missiles loaded with nuclear warheads and flew to Barksdale AFB, Louisiana. After landing, Doom 99 sat on the tarmac at Barksdale unguarded for nine hours before the nuclear weapons were discovered. Below you will read the details of that 36-hour period with six primary mistakes highlighted. While the Air Force was reeling from the investigations of the unauthorized movement of nuclear weapons, it was revealed that Taiwan had received classified forward sections of the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile rather than the helicopter batteries it had ordered from the U.S. bringing to light a second nuclear-related incident. These two incidents resulted in six major investigations and studies.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2012
- Accession Number
- ADA557097
Entities
People
- Aadina Ludin
- Heather H. Nelson
- Michelle Spencer