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AGM-28 Hound Dog

The North American Aviation AGM-28 Hound Dog was a supersonic, turbojet-propelled, nuclear armed, air-launched cruise missile developed in 1959 for the United States Air Force. It was primarily designed to be capable of attacking Soviet ground-based air defense sites prior to a potential air attack by B-52 Stratofortress long range bombers during the Cold War. The Hound Dog was first given the designation B-77, then redesignated GAM-77, and finally AGM-28. It was conceived as a temporary standoff missile for the B-52, to be used until the GAM-87 Skybolt air-launched ballistic missile was available. Instead, the Skybolt was cancelled within a few years and the Hound Dog continued to be deployed for a total of 15 years until its replacement by newer missiles, including the AGM-69 SRAM and then the AGM-86 ALCM.

AGM-28 Hound Dog
AGM-28 in flight (showing the nose-high attitude)
TypeCruise missile
Place of originUnited States
Service history
In serviceSeptember 13, 1960
Production history
ManufacturerNorth American Aviation
Unit cost$690,073
ProducedApril 1959
Specifications
Mass10,147 pounds (4,603 kg)
Length42 feet 6 inches (12.95 m)
Height9 feet 4 inches (2.84 m)
Diameter28 inches (710 mm)
Wingspan12 feet 2 inches (3.71 m)
Warhead1,742 pounds (790 kg) W28 Class D nuclear warhead
Detonation
mechanism
Airburst or Contact

EnginePratt & Whitney J52-P-3 turbojet; 7,500 lbf (33 kN).
Operational
range
785 miles (1,263 km)
Flight ceiling56,200 feet (17,100 m)
Flight altitude200 to 56,000 feet (61 to 17,069 m)
Maximum speed Mach 2.1
Guidance
system
Astro-inertial guidance
Launch
platform
B-52 Stratofortress

Development edit

During the 1950s the US became aware of developments regarding the Soviet Union's surface-to-air missiles (SAMs), notably at large installations being constructed around Moscow. At the time, the entire nuclear deterrent of the United States was based on manned strategic bombers, both with the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Navy. The deployment of large numbers of SAMs placed this force at some risk of being rendered ineffective. One solution to this problem is to extend the range of the bomb, either through glide bomb techniques, or more practically, by mounting them in a short-to-medium-range missile. This allows the weapon to be fired while the bomber remains outside the range of the enemy's defensive missiles.

Since the Soviet air-defenses were static and easy to spot from aerial reconnaissance or satellite reconnaissance photos, the Air Force planned to use a long-range cruise missile to attack the air-defense bases before the bombers got within their range. The SA-2 Guideline missile had a maximum range of about 30 kilometers at that time. Since the bombers would be approaching the sites as the weapon flew towards it, their own guided missiles would have to be launched well before it entered this range. The weapon needed to fly fast enough and far enough that the bomber was at a safe distance when the weapon reached the target. If the American missile was to be used to attack enemy air bases as well, an extended range of several hundred kilometers would be needed due to the much longer range of the fighters compared to the SAMs.

A missile with these capabilities was called for in General Operational Requirement 148, which was released on March 15, 1956, known as WS-131B.[1][2] GOR 148 called for a supersonic air-to-surface cruise missile with a weight of not more than 12,500 pounds (5,700 kg) (fully fueled and armed) to be carried in pairs by the B-52 Stratofortress.[3] Each B-52 would carry two of the missiles, one under each wing, on a pylon located between the B-52's fuselage and its inboard pair of engines.[4]

Both Chance Vought and North American Aviation submitted GAM-77 proposals to the USAF in July 1957, and both based on their earlier work on long-range ground-launched cruise missiles. Vought's submission was for an air-launched version of the Regulus missile, developed for the US Navy,[3] while North American's was adapted from their Navaho missile.[5] On August 21, 1957, North American Aviation was awarded a contract to develop Weapon System 131B, which included the Hound Dog missile.[5]

The importance of Hound Dog in penetrating the Soviet air-defense system was later described by Senator John F. Kennedy in a speech to the American Legion convention in Miami, Florida, on October 18, 1960: "We must take immediate steps to protect our present nuclear striking force from surprise attack. Today, more than 90 percent of our retaliatory capacity is made up of aircraft and missiles which have fixed, un-protectable bases whose location is known to the Russians. We can only do this by providing SAC with the capability of maintaining a continuous airborne alert, and by pressing projects such as the Hound Dog air-ground missile, which will enable manned bombers to penetrate Soviet defenses with their weapons".[6]

Design edit

 
On the pylon, beneath a B-52 wing
 
Hound Dog and its mounting pylon, which includes electronics and refueling systems

The Hound Dog missile's airframe was an adaptation of technology developed in the SM-64 Navaho missile, adapted for launching from the B-52.[5][7] The Hound Dog's design was based on that of the Navaho G-38 missile, which featured small delta wings and forward canards.[3]

A Pratt & Whitney J52-P-3 turbojet propelled the Hound Dog, instead of Navaho's ramjet engine. The J52 engine was located in a pod located beneath the rear fuselage. The J52-P-3 used in the Hound Dog, unlike J52s installed in aircraft like the A-4 Skyhawk or the A-6 Intruder, was optimized to run at maximum power during the missile's flight. As a result, the Hound Dog's version of the J52 had a short operating lifetime of only six hours.[6] However, in combat, the Hound Dog was expected to self-destruct in less than six hours.

A derivative of the Navaho's NAA Autonetics Division N-6 inertial navigation system (INS), the N5G, was used in the Hound Dog. A star tracker manufactured by Kollsman Instruments Co. and located in the B-52's pylon was used to correct inertial navigation system orientation errors with celestial observations while the Hound Dog was being carried by the B-52.[3] The INS could also be used to determine the bomber's position after the initial calibration and "leveling" process, which took about 90 minutes. The Hound Dog had a circular error probable (CEP) of 2.2 miles (3.5 km), which was acceptable for a weapon equipped with a nuclear warhead.[8]

The thermonuclear warhead carried by the Hound Dog was the W28 Class D.[6] The W28 warhead could be preset to yield an explosive power of between 70 kilotons and 1.45 megatons. Detonation of the Hound Dog's W28 warhead could be programmed to occur on impact (ground burst) or air burst at a preset altitude. An air burst would have been used against a large area, soft target. A surface impact would have been used against a hard target such as a missile site or command and control center.

The Hound Dog could be launched from the B-52 Stratofortress at high altitudes or low altitudes, but not below 5,000 feet (1,500 m) in altitude. Initially, three different flight profiles for the Hound Dog were available for selection by the commander and the bombardier of the bomber (though other options were added later):

  • High-altitude attack: The Hound Dog would have flown at a high altitude (up to 56,000 feet (17,000 m) depending on the amount of jet fuel on board the missile) all the way to the immediate area of its target, then diving to its nuclear warhead's preset detonation altitude.
  • Low-altitude attack: The Hound Dog would have flown at a low altitude – below 5,000 feet (1,500 m) (air-pressure altitude) to its target where its nuclear warhead would have detonated. In this mode of operation, the Hound Dog had a shortened range of about 400 miles (640 km) when this flight profile was used. The missile would not carry out terrain following in this flight profile. No major terrain obstructions could exist at the preset altitude along the missile's flight path.
  • Low-altitude attack: The GAM-77B (later AGM-28B) could fly a low radar altitude, from 3,000 to 100 feet (914 to 30 m) above the ground. As mentioned above in the GAM-77A model description, this shortened range. However, the improvement of "flying in the weeds", was such that the missile could be flown down in ground clutter (radar) thus nearly invisible to radar detection. Eventually, all A model GAM-77s were given this modification as well.
  • A dogleg attack: The Hound Dog would have flown along a designated heading (at either high or low altitudes) to a preset location. At that location the missile would have turned left or right and then proceeded to its target. The intention of this maneuver was to attempt to draw defensive fighter planes away from the missile's target.

The first air-drop test of a dummy Hound Dog was carried out in November 1958. 52 GAM-77A missiles were launched for testing and training purposes between April 23, 1959, and August 30, 1965. Hound Dog launches occurred at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, and at the White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico.[3]

The Hound Dog missile's development was completed in only 30 months.[7] North American received a production contract to build Hound Dogs on October 16, 1958.[4] The first production Hound Dog missile was then delivered to the Air Force on December 21, 1959. 722 Hound Dog missiles were produced by North American Aviation before its production of them ended in March 1963.[3]

In May 1961, an improved Hound Dog missile was test-flown for the first time. This upgrade incorporated improvements to reduce its radar cross-section.[9] The Hound Dog already had a low head-on radar cross-section because of its highly swept delta wings. This low radar cross-section was lowered further by replacing its nose cap, engine intake spike, and engine duct with new radar-absorbent material components that scattered or absorbed radar energy. It has been reported that these radar cross-section improvements were removed as Hound Dogs were withdrawn from service.

The GAM-77A version of the GAM-77 also included a new Kollsman Instruments KS-140 star tracker that was integrated with the N-6 inertial navigation system. This unit replaced the star tracker that had been located in the B-52's wing pylon. The fuel capacity of the GAM-77A was increased during this upgrade. A radar altimeter was added to the missile to provide (vertical) terrain-following radar capability to the Hound Dog. 428 Hound Dog missiles were upgraded to the GAM-77A configuration by North American.[10]

66 GAM-77A Hound Dog missiles were launched for testing and training up through April 1973.[6]

In June 1963 the GAM-77 and GAM-77A were re-designated AGM-28A and AGM-28B, respectively.

In 1971, a Hound Dog missile was test-flown with a newly developed Terrain Contour Matching (TERCOM) navigation system. Reportedly, the designation AGM-28C was reserved for this version of the Hound Dog if development had been continued. While a Hound Dog with TERCOM was never deployed, this technology, with much better electronics and digital computers, was later used in both the Air Force's Air Launched Cruise Missile and the Navy's Tomahawk.[11]

In 1972, the Bendix Corporation was awarded a contract to develop an anti-radiation missile passive radar seeker to guide the Hound Dog missile to antennas transmitting radar signals. A Hound Dog with this radar seeker was test-flown in 1973, but never mass-produced.[12]

Operational history edit

 
B-52F takeoff with AGM-28 Hound Dog missiles

On December 21, 1959, General Thomas S. Power, the Commander in Chief of the U.S. Air Force's Strategic Air Command (SAC), formally accepted the first production Hound Dog missile.[4] Just two months later in February, SAC test-launched its first unarmed Hound Dog at Eglin Air Force Base.

In July 1960, the Hound Dog reached initial operational capability with the first B-52 unit. In November 1960, the 97th Bombardment Wing at Blytheville Air Force Base, Arkansas became the first combat wing in SAC to be equipped with the missile. The first test flight at the base took place on November 16, 1960.[13] The Hound Dog was used on airborne alert for the first time in January 1962. In 1962, SAC activated missile maintenance squadrons to provide maintenance for both the Hound Dog and the ADM-20 Quail decoy missile. Full operational capability was achieved in August 1963 when 29 B-52 bomber wings were operational with the Hound Dog.

In 1960, SAC developed procedures so that the B-52 could use the Hound Dog's J52 engine for additional thrust while the missile was located on the bomber's two pylons. This helped heavily laden B-52s fly away from their airbases faster, before enemy nuclear weapons obliterated them. The Hound Dog could then be refueled from the B-52's wing fuel tanks.[10]

One Hound Dog missile crashed near the town of Samson, Alabama, when it failed to self-destruct after a test launch from Eglin Air Force Base.[6] In 1962, a Hound Dog was accidentally dropped to the ground during an underwing systems check.[6]

In May 1962, operation "Silk Hat" was conducted at Eglin Air Force Base. During this exercise, a Hound Dog test launch was conducted before an audience of national and international dignitaries headed by President John F. Kennedy and Vice-President Lyndon B. Johnson.[6]

On September 22, 1966, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara recommended retiring all of the remaining Hound Dog missiles within a few years. The Hound Dogs would be retained pending the outcome of the Terrain Contour Matching (TERCOM) guidance system development program. Secretary McNamara's recommendation was not acted upon, and the Hound Dog remained in service.[6]

After thirteen years of service with the Air Force, the last Hound Dog missile was removed from alert deployment on June 30, 1975. The Hound Dog missiles were kept in dead storage[clarification needed] for a number of years. The last Hound Dog was retired for scrapping on June 15, 1978, from the 42nd Bomb Wing at Loring Air Force Base, Maine.[4]

No Hound Dog missile was ever used in combat, since it was strictly a weapon for nuclear warfare.

Missile tail numbers[1]
GAM-77 GAM-77A
59-2791 to 59–2867 60–5574 to 60–5603
60–2078 to 60–2247 60–6691 to 60–6699
61–2118 to 61–2357
62–0030 to 62–0206

Numbers in service edit

The number of Hound Dog missiles in service, by year:

1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978
1 54 230 547 593 593 542 548 477 312 349 345 340 338 329 327 308 288 249 0

Variants edit

  • XGAM-77 — 25 prototype missiles produced
  • GAM-77 — 697 missiles produced.
  • GAM-77A — 452 missiles upgraded from GAM-77 to GAM-77A configuration.
  • AGM-28A — The GAM-77 was redesignated the AGM-28A in June 1963
  • AGM-28B — The GAM-77A was redesignated the AGM-28B in June 1963
  • AGM-28C — Proposed Hound Dog that would have been equipped with a TERCOM guidance system.

Operator edit

  United States

Units using the Hound Dog edit

[14][15]

Surviving missiles edit

 
Display missile at the New England Air Museum, Connecticut.The black cylinder below represents the W-28 nuclear warhead.

All of the surviving missiles are located in the contiguous United States.

Popular culture edit

Where it received the name Hound Dog has been the source of argument for decades. In recent years, however, people have given credit to fans in the Air Force of Elvis Presley's version of "Hound Dog".[3]

See also edit

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

Related lists

References edit

Citations edit

  1. ^ a b "AGM-28 Missile Hound Dog Missile Hound Dog" [1] June 25, 2008, at the Wayback Machine Access date: October 8, 2007.
  2. ^ "AGM-28A Hound Dog" [2] October 15, 2007, at the Wayback Machine Access date: October 8, 2007.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g "A Brief Account of the Beginning of the Hounddog (GAM 77)" [3] November 20, 2008, at the Wayback Machine Access date: October 28, 2007.
  4. ^ a b c d "AGM-28 Hound Dog Missile" [4] February 24, 2012, at the Wayback Machine Access date: October 8, 2007.
  5. ^ a b c Mark Wade. "Navaho". Encyclopedia Astronautica Website. . Archived from the original on November 3, 2007. Retrieved October 29, 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Access date: October 20, 2007.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h "AGM-28 Missile Memos" [5] February 21, 2012, at the Wayback Machine Access date: October 8, 2007.
  7. ^ a b "National Affairs: Mongrel Makes Good". Time. April 25, 1960. from the original on July 13, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  8. ^ J. McHaffie. My experience with the GAM-77 program. [6] March 5, 2016, at the Wayback Machine Access date: October 8, 2007.
  9. ^ David C. Aronstein and Albert C. Piccirillo. Have Blue and the F-117A: Evolution of the Stealth Fighter, AIAA, 1997, ISBN 1-56347-245-7.
  10. ^ a b National Museum of the Air Force. North American AGM-28B Hound Dog. . Archived from the original on November 15, 2007. Retrieved October 29, 2007. Access date: October 20, 2007.
  11. ^ Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missiles. AGM-28. [7] February 9, 2012, at the Wayback Machine Access date: October 28, 2007.
  12. ^ IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN WEBSITE. [3.0] Cruise Missiles Of The 1950s & 1960s. . Archived from the original on August 12, 2007. Retrieved October 29, 2007. Access date: October 28, 2007.
  13. ^ "Hound Dog Gets Wings". The Blytheville Courier. Blytheville, Arkansas. November 16, 1960. p. 1.
  14. ^ Dorr, R. & Peacock, L. B-52 Stratofortress: Boeing's Cold War Warrior, Osprey Aviation: Great Britain. ISBN 1-84176-097-8
  15. ^ "AMMS Bases". Ammsalumni.org. from the original on October 2, 2011. Retrieved September 28, 2011.
  16. ^ "USAF Serial Number Search Results". cgibin.rcn.com. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
  17. ^ "Museum of Aviation (AGM-28A)". from the original on February 2, 2018. Retrieved February 20, 2018.

Bibliography edit

  • , Historical Essay by Andreas Parsch, Encyclopedia Astronautica website, retrieved October 8, 2007.
  • , Travis Air Museum website, retrieved October 8, 2007
  • The Navaho Project – A Look Back, North American Aviation Retirees Bulletin, Summer 2007.
  • Complete List of All U.S. Nuclear Weapons, Nuclear Weapon Archive Website, retrieved October 13, 2007.
  • B-52 Stratofortress: Boeing's Cold War Warrior, Dorr, R. & Peacock, L., Osprey Aviation: Great Britain. ISBN 1-84176-097-8
  • Hound Dog Fact Sheet, Space Line Website, retrieved on October 14, 2007
  • Angle of Attack: Harrison Storms and the Race to the Moon, Mike Gray, Penguin, 1994, ISBN 978-0-14-023280-6
  • , Boeing Corporate Website, retrieved on October 14, 2007,
  • , Aviation Enthusiast Corner Website, retrieved on October 21, 2007.
  • The USAF and the Cruise Missile Opportunity or Threat, Kenneth P. Werrell, Technology and the Air Force A Retrospective Assessment, Air Force History and Museums Program, 1997
  • Airpower Theory and Practice, Edited by John Gooch, Frank Cass Publishing, 1995, ISBN 0-7146-4186-3.
  • Association of the Air Force Missileers: "Victors in the Cold War, Turner Publishing Company, 1998, ISBN 1-56311-455-0

hound, north, american, aviation, supersonic, turbojet, propelled, nuclear, armed, launched, cruise, missile, developed, 1959, united, states, force, primarily, designed, capable, attacking, soviet, ground, based, defense, sites, prior, potential, attack, stra. The North American Aviation AGM 28 Hound Dog was a supersonic turbojet propelled nuclear armed air launched cruise missile developed in 1959 for the United States Air Force It was primarily designed to be capable of attacking Soviet ground based air defense sites prior to a potential air attack by B 52 Stratofortress long range bombers during the Cold War The Hound Dog was first given the designation B 77 then redesignated GAM 77 and finally AGM 28 It was conceived as a temporary standoff missile for the B 52 to be used until the GAM 87 Skybolt air launched ballistic missile was available Instead the Skybolt was cancelled within a few years and the Hound Dog continued to be deployed for a total of 15 years until its replacement by newer missiles including the AGM 69 SRAM and then the AGM 86 ALCM AGM 28 Hound DogAGM 28 in flight showing the nose high attitude TypeCruise missilePlace of originUnited StatesService historyIn serviceSeptember 13 1960Production historyManufacturerNorth American AviationUnit cost 690 073ProducedApril 1959SpecificationsMass10 147 pounds 4 603 kg Length42 feet 6 inches 12 95 m Height9 feet 4 inches 2 84 m Diameter28 inches 710 mm Wingspan12 feet 2 inches 3 71 m Warhead1 742 pounds 790 kg W28 Class D nuclear warheadDetonationmechanismAirburst or ContactEnginePratt amp Whitney J52 P 3 turbojet 7 500 lbf 33 kN Operationalrange785 miles 1 263 km Flight ceiling56 200 feet 17 100 m Flight altitude200 to 56 000 feet 61 to 17 069 m Maximum speedMach 2 1GuidancesystemAstro inertial guidanceLaunchplatformB 52 Stratofortress Contents 1 Development 2 Design 3 Operational history 3 1 Numbers in service 4 Variants 5 Operator 5 1 Units using the Hound Dog 6 Surviving missiles 7 Popular culture 8 See also 9 References 9 1 Citations 9 2 BibliographyDevelopment editDuring the 1950s the US became aware of developments regarding the Soviet Union s surface to air missiles SAMs notably at large installations being constructed around Moscow At the time the entire nuclear deterrent of the United States was based on manned strategic bombers both with the U S Air Force and the U S Navy The deployment of large numbers of SAMs placed this force at some risk of being rendered ineffective One solution to this problem is to extend the range of the bomb either through glide bomb techniques or more practically by mounting them in a short to medium range missile This allows the weapon to be fired while the bomber remains outside the range of the enemy s defensive missiles Since the Soviet air defenses were static and easy to spot from aerial reconnaissance or satellite reconnaissance photos the Air Force planned to use a long range cruise missile to attack the air defense bases before the bombers got within their range The SA 2 Guideline missile had a maximum range of about 30 kilometers at that time Since the bombers would be approaching the sites as the weapon flew towards it their own guided missiles would have to be launched well before it entered this range The weapon needed to fly fast enough and far enough that the bomber was at a safe distance when the weapon reached the target If the American missile was to be used to attack enemy air bases as well an extended range of several hundred kilometers would be needed due to the much longer range of the fighters compared to the SAMs A missile with these capabilities was called for in General Operational Requirement 148 which was released on March 15 1956 known as WS 131B 1 2 GOR 148 called for a supersonic air to surface cruise missile with a weight of not more than 12 500 pounds 5 700 kg fully fueled and armed to be carried in pairs by the B 52 Stratofortress 3 Each B 52 would carry two of the missiles one under each wing on a pylon located between the B 52 s fuselage and its inboard pair of engines 4 Both Chance Vought and North American Aviation submitted GAM 77 proposals to the USAF in July 1957 and both based on their earlier work on long range ground launched cruise missiles Vought s submission was for an air launched version of the Regulus missile developed for the US Navy 3 while North American s was adapted from their Navaho missile 5 On August 21 1957 North American Aviation was awarded a contract to develop Weapon System 131B which included the Hound Dog missile 5 The importance of Hound Dog in penetrating the Soviet air defense system was later described by Senator John F Kennedy in a speech to the American Legion convention in Miami Florida on October 18 1960 We must take immediate steps to protect our present nuclear striking force from surprise attack Today more than 90 percent of our retaliatory capacity is made up of aircraft and missiles which have fixed un protectable bases whose location is known to the Russians We can only do this by providing SAC with the capability of maintaining a continuous airborne alert and by pressing projects such as the Hound Dog air ground missile which will enable manned bombers to penetrate Soviet defenses with their weapons 6 Design edit nbsp On the pylon beneath a B 52 wing nbsp Hound Dog and its mounting pylon which includes electronics and refueling systemsThe Hound Dog missile s airframe was an adaptation of technology developed in the SM 64 Navaho missile adapted for launching from the B 52 5 7 The Hound Dog s design was based on that of the Navaho G 38 missile which featured small delta wings and forward canards 3 A Pratt amp Whitney J52 P 3 turbojet propelled the Hound Dog instead of Navaho s ramjet engine The J52 engine was located in a pod located beneath the rear fuselage The J52 P 3 used in the Hound Dog unlike J52s installed in aircraft like the A 4 Skyhawk or the A 6 Intruder was optimized to run at maximum power during the missile s flight As a result the Hound Dog s version of the J52 had a short operating lifetime of only six hours 6 However in combat the Hound Dog was expected to self destruct in less than six hours A derivative of the Navaho s NAA Autonetics Division N 6 inertial navigation system INS the N5G was used in the Hound Dog A star tracker manufactured by Kollsman Instruments Co and located in the B 52 s pylon was used to correct inertial navigation system orientation errors with celestial observations while the Hound Dog was being carried by the B 52 3 The INS could also be used to determine the bomber s position after the initial calibration and leveling process which took about 90 minutes The Hound Dog had a circular error probable CEP of 2 2 miles 3 5 km which was acceptable for a weapon equipped with a nuclear warhead 8 The thermonuclear warhead carried by the Hound Dog was the W28 Class D 6 The W28 warhead could be preset to yield an explosive power of between 70 kilotons and 1 45 megatons Detonation of the Hound Dog s W28 warhead could be programmed to occur on impact ground burst or air burst at a preset altitude An air burst would have been used against a large area soft target A surface impact would have been used against a hard target such as a missile site or command and control center The Hound Dog could be launched from the B 52 Stratofortress at high altitudes or low altitudes but not below 5 000 feet 1 500 m in altitude Initially three different flight profiles for the Hound Dog were available for selection by the commander and the bombardier of the bomber though other options were added later High altitude attack The Hound Dog would have flown at a high altitude up to 56 000 feet 17 000 m depending on the amount of jet fuel on board the missile all the way to the immediate area of its target then diving to its nuclear warhead s preset detonation altitude Low altitude attack The Hound Dog would have flown at a low altitude below 5 000 feet 1 500 m air pressure altitude to its target where its nuclear warhead would have detonated In this mode of operation the Hound Dog had a shortened range of about 400 miles 640 km when this flight profile was used The missile would not carry out terrain following in this flight profile No major terrain obstructions could exist at the preset altitude along the missile s flight path Low altitude attack The GAM 77B later AGM 28B could fly a low radar altitude from 3 000 to 100 feet 914 to 30 m above the ground As mentioned above in the GAM 77A model description this shortened range However the improvement of flying in the weeds was such that the missile could be flown down in ground clutter radar thus nearly invisible to radar detection Eventually all A model GAM 77s were given this modification as well A dogleg attack The Hound Dog would have flown along a designated heading at either high or low altitudes to a preset location At that location the missile would have turned left or right and then proceeded to its target The intention of this maneuver was to attempt to draw defensive fighter planes away from the missile s target The first air drop test of a dummy Hound Dog was carried out in November 1958 52 GAM 77A missiles were launched for testing and training purposes between April 23 1959 and August 30 1965 Hound Dog launches occurred at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at Eglin Air Force Base Florida and at the White Sands Missile Range New Mexico 3 The Hound Dog missile s development was completed in only 30 months 7 North American received a production contract to build Hound Dogs on October 16 1958 4 The first production Hound Dog missile was then delivered to the Air Force on December 21 1959 722 Hound Dog missiles were produced by North American Aviation before its production of them ended in March 1963 3 In May 1961 an improved Hound Dog missile was test flown for the first time This upgrade incorporated improvements to reduce its radar cross section 9 The Hound Dog already had a low head on radar cross section because of its highly swept delta wings This low radar cross section was lowered further by replacing its nose cap engine intake spike and engine duct with new radar absorbent material components that scattered or absorbed radar energy It has been reported that these radar cross section improvements were removed as Hound Dogs were withdrawn from service The GAM 77A version of the GAM 77 also included a new Kollsman Instruments KS 140 star tracker that was integrated with the N 6 inertial navigation system This unit replaced the star tracker that had been located in the B 52 s wing pylon The fuel capacity of the GAM 77A was increased during this upgrade A radar altimeter was added to the missile to provide vertical terrain following radar capability to the Hound Dog 428 Hound Dog missiles were upgraded to the GAM 77A configuration by North American 10 66 GAM 77A Hound Dog missiles were launched for testing and training up through April 1973 6 In June 1963 the GAM 77 and GAM 77A were re designated AGM 28A and AGM 28B respectively In 1971 a Hound Dog missile was test flown with a newly developed Terrain Contour Matching TERCOM navigation system Reportedly the designation AGM 28C was reserved for this version of the Hound Dog if development had been continued While a Hound Dog with TERCOM was never deployed this technology with much better electronics and digital computers was later used in both the Air Force s Air Launched Cruise Missile and the Navy s Tomahawk 11 In 1972 the Bendix Corporation was awarded a contract to develop an anti radiation missile passive radar seeker to guide the Hound Dog missile to antennas transmitting radar signals A Hound Dog with this radar seeker was test flown in 1973 but never mass produced 12 Operational history edit nbsp B 52F takeoff with AGM 28 Hound Dog missilesOn December 21 1959 General Thomas S Power the Commander in Chief of the U S Air Force s Strategic Air Command SAC formally accepted the first production Hound Dog missile 4 Just two months later in February SAC test launched its first unarmed Hound Dog at Eglin Air Force Base In July 1960 the Hound Dog reached initial operational capability with the first B 52 unit In November 1960 the 97th Bombardment Wing at Blytheville Air Force Base Arkansas became the first combat wing in SAC to be equipped with the missile The first test flight at the base took place on November 16 1960 13 The Hound Dog was used on airborne alert for the first time in January 1962 In 1962 SAC activated missile maintenance squadrons to provide maintenance for both the Hound Dog and the ADM 20 Quail decoy missile Full operational capability was achieved in August 1963 when 29 B 52 bomber wings were operational with the Hound Dog In 1960 SAC developed procedures so that the B 52 could use the Hound Dog s J52 engine for additional thrust while the missile was located on the bomber s two pylons This helped heavily laden B 52s fly away from their airbases faster before enemy nuclear weapons obliterated them The Hound Dog could then be refueled from the B 52 s wing fuel tanks 10 One Hound Dog missile crashed near the town of Samson Alabama when it failed to self destruct after a test launch from Eglin Air Force Base 6 In 1962 a Hound Dog was accidentally dropped to the ground during an underwing systems check 6 In May 1962 operation Silk Hat was conducted at Eglin Air Force Base During this exercise a Hound Dog test launch was conducted before an audience of national and international dignitaries headed by President John F Kennedy and Vice President Lyndon B Johnson 6 On September 22 1966 Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara recommended retiring all of the remaining Hound Dog missiles within a few years The Hound Dogs would be retained pending the outcome of the Terrain Contour Matching TERCOM guidance system development program Secretary McNamara s recommendation was not acted upon and the Hound Dog remained in service 6 After thirteen years of service with the Air Force the last Hound Dog missile was removed from alert deployment on June 30 1975 The Hound Dog missiles were kept in dead storage clarification needed for a number of years The last Hound Dog was retired for scrapping on June 15 1978 from the 42nd Bomb Wing at Loring Air Force Base Maine 4 No Hound Dog missile was ever used in combat since it was strictly a weapon for nuclear warfare Missile tail numbers 1 GAM 77 GAM 77A59 2791 to 59 2867 60 5574 to 60 560360 2078 to 60 2247 60 6691 to 60 669961 2118 to 61 235762 0030 to 62 0206Numbers in service edit The number of Hound Dog missiles in service by year 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 19781 54 230 547 593 593 542 548 477 312 349 345 340 338 329 327 308 288 249 0Variants editXGAM 77 25 prototype missiles produced GAM 77 697 missiles produced GAM 77A 452 missiles upgraded from GAM 77 to GAM 77A configuration AGM 28A The GAM 77 was redesignated the AGM 28A in June 1963 AGM 28B The GAM 77A was redesignated the AGM 28B in June 1963 AGM 28C Proposed Hound Dog that would have been equipped with a TERCOM guidance system Operator edit nbsp United StatesUnited States Air ForceUnits using the Hound Dog edit 14 15 2d Bombardment Wing Barksdale AFB Louisiana 20th Bombardment Squadron 62d Bombardment Squadron 596th Bombardment Squadron 5th Bombardment Wing Heavy Travis AFB California Minot AFB North Dakota 23d Bombardment Squadron 6th Bombardment Wing Heavy Walker AFB New Mexico 24th Bombardment Squadron 40th Bombardment Squadron 11th Bombardment Wing Heavy Altus AFB Oklahoma 26th Bombardment Squadron 17th Bombardment Wing Heavy Wright Patterson AFB Ohio 34th Bombardment Squadron 19th Bombardment Wing Heavy Homestead AFB Florida Robins AFB Georgia 28th Bombardment Squadron 28th Bombardment Wing Heavy Ellsworth AFB South Dakota 77th Bombardment Squadron 39th Bombardment Wing Eglin AFB Florida 62d Bombardment Squadron 42d Bombardment Wing Heavy Loring AFB Maine 69th Bombardment Squadron 70th Bombardment Squadron 68th Bombardment Wing Seymour Johnson AFB North Carolina 51st Bombardment Squadron 70th Bombardment Wing Clinton Sherman AFB Oklahoma 6th Bombardment Squadron 72d Bombardment Wing Heavy Ramey AFB Puerto Rico 60th Bombardment Squadron 92d Bombardment Wing Heavy Fairchild AFB Washington 325th Bombardment Squadron 97th Bombardment Wing Heavy Blytheville AFB Arkansas 340th Bombardment Squadron 306th Bombardment Wing McCoy AFB Florida 367th Bombardment Squadron 319th Bombardment Wing Heavy Grand Forks AFB North Dakota 46th Bombardment Squadron 320th Bombardment Wing Mather AFB California 441st Bombardment Squadron 340th Bombardment Wing Bergstrom AFB Texas 486th Bombardment Squadron 379th Bombardment Wing Heavy Wurtsmith AFB Michigan 524th Bombardment Squadron 397th Bombardment Wing Dow AFB Maine 341st Bombardment Squadron 410th Bombardment Wing K I Sawyer AFB Michigan 644th Bombardment Squadron 416th Bombardment Wing Griffiss AFB New York 668th Bombardment Squadron 449th Bombardment Wing Kincheloe AFB Michigan 716th Bombardment Squadron 450th Bombardment Wing Minot AFB North Dakota 721st Bombardment Squadron 454th Bombardment Wing Columbus AFB Mississippi 736th Bombardment Squadron 456th Bombardment Wing Beale AFB California 744th Bombardment Squadron 465th Bombardment Wing Robins AFB Georgia 781st Bombardment Squadron 484th Bombardment Wing Turner AFB Georgia 864th Bombardment Squadron 4038th Strategic Wing Dow AFB Maine 341st Bombardment Squadron 4039th Strategic Wing Griffiss AFB New York 75th Bombardment Squadron 4042d Strategic Wing K I Sawyer AFB Michigan 526th Bombardment Squadron 4043d Strategic Wing Wright Patterson AFB Ohio 42d Bombardment Squadron 4047th Strategic Wing McCoy AFB Florida 347th Bombardment Squadron 4123d Strategic Wing Clinton Sherman AFB Oklahoma 98th Bombardment Squadron 4126th Strategic Wing Beale AFB California 31st Bombardment Squadron Beale AFB California 4130th Strategic Wing Bergstrom AFB Texas 335th Bombardment Squadron 4133d Strategic Wing Grand Forks AFB North Dakota 30th Bombardment Squadron 4134th Strategic Wing Mather AFB California 72d Bombardment Squadron 4135th Strategic Wing Eglin AFB Florida 301st Bombardment Squadron 4136th Strategic Wing Minot AFB North Dakota 525th Bombardment Squadron 4137th Strategic Wing Robins AFB Georgia 342d Bombardment Squadron 4138th Strategic Wing Turner AFB Georgia 336th Bombardment Squadron 4228th Strategic Wing Columbus AFB Mississippi 492d Bombardment Squadron 4238th Strategic Wing Barksdale AFB Louisiana 436th Bombardment Squadron 4239th Strategic Wing Kincheloe AFB Michigan 93d Bombardment Squadron 4241st Strategic Wing Seymour Johnson AFB North Carolina 73d Bombardment SquadronSurviving missiles editThis section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed April 2020 Learn how and when to remove this template message nbsp Display missile at the New England Air Museum Connecticut The black cylinder below represents the W 28 nuclear warhead All of the surviving missiles are located in the contiguous United States AGM 28 S N 60 2176 located at the Eighth Air Force Museum Barksdale Air Force Base Bossier City Louisiana AGM 28 located at the Aerospace Museum of California former McClellan Air Force Base Sacramento California AGM 28 S N 33792 located at the Air Force Space amp Missile Museum Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Florida AGM 28 S N 62 0003 located at the Castle Air Museum former Castle Air Force Base Atwater California AGM 28 S N 60 2192 located at the Dyess Linear Air Park Dyess Air Force Base Texas AGM 28 marked as S N 59 2794 located at the Air Force Armament Museum Eglin Air Force Base Florida AGM 28 located at Grand Forks Air Force Base North Dakota AGM 28 located at the Joe Davies Heritage Airpark Air Force Plant 42 Palmdale California AGM 28 located at Mars Hill Town Park Mars Hill North Carolina AGM 28 S N 61 2206 located at Minot Air Force Base North Dakota AGM 28 S N 60 2141 located at the National Atomic Museum adjacent to Kirtland Air Force Base Albuquerque New Mexico AGM 28 S N 62 0072 located at the National Museum of the United States Air Force Wright Patterson Air Force Base Dayton Ohio It was transferred to the museum in 1975 16 AGM 28 S N 60 505 located at the New England Air Museum Windsor Locks Connecticut AGM 28 S N 59 2796 Museum of Aviation Robins Air Force Base Warner Robins Georgia Formerly at Octave Chanute Aerospace Museum former Chanute Air Force Base Rantoul Illinois 17 AGM 28 S N 59 2866 located at the Pima Air amp Space Museum adjacent to Davis Monthan Air Force Base Tucson Arizona AGM 28 S N 60 2092 located at the Pima Air amp Space Museum adjacent to Davis Monthan Air Force Base Tucson Arizona AGM 28 located at the Pratt amp Whitney Engine Museum and Hangar East Hartford Connecticut AGM 28 located at Veterans Park in Presque Isle Maine GAM 77 S N 61 2213 located in front of the Loring Military Heritage Center on former Loring AFB Limestone Maine AGM 28 S N 61 2148 located at the Museum of Aviation Robins Air Force Base Georgia AGM 28 S N 59 2791 located at the South Dakota Air and Space Museum Ellsworth Air Force Base Rapid City South Dakota AGM 28 S N 60 2110 located at the U S Space and Rocket Center Huntsville Alabama AGM 28 located at the Strategic Air and Space Museum adjacent to Ashland Nebraska AGM 28 located at the American Legion in Tecumseh Oklahoma XGAM 77 located at the Travis Air Museum Travis Air Force Base California AGM 28 S N 59 2847 located at the Veterans Home of Wyoming in Buffalo Wyoming AGM 28 located at the White Sands Missile Range Missile Park New Mexico AGM 28 S N 60 2971 located at the Wings of Eagles Discovery Center Horseheads New YorkPopular culture editWhere it received the name Hound Dog has been the source of argument for decades In recent years however people have given credit to fans in the Air Force of Elvis Presley s version of Hound Dog 3 See also edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to AGM 28 Hound Dog Aircraft of comparable role configuration and era P 270 Moskit Raduga Kh 20 Raduga K 10S Lavochkin La 17Related lists List of military aircraft of the United States List of missilesReferences editCitations edit a b AGM 28 Missile Hound Dog Missile Hound Dog 1 Archived June 25 2008 at the Wayback Machine Access date October 8 2007 AGM 28A Hound Dog 2 Archived October 15 2007 at the Wayback Machine Access date October 8 2007 a b c d e f g A Brief Account of the Beginning of the Hounddog GAM 77 3 Archived November 20 2008 at the Wayback Machine Access date October 28 2007 a b c d AGM 28 Hound Dog Missile 4 Archived February 24 2012 at the Wayback Machine Access date October 8 2007 a b c Mark Wade Navaho Encyclopedia Astronautica Website Archived copy Archived from the original on November 3 2007 Retrieved October 29 2007 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint archived copy as title link Access date October 20 2007 a b c d e f g h AGM 28 Missile Memos 5 Archived February 21 2012 at the Wayback Machine Access date October 8 2007 a b National Affairs Mongrel Makes Good Time April 25 1960 Archived from the original on July 13 2022 Retrieved July 13 2022 J McHaffie My experience with the GAM 77 program 6 Archived March 5 2016 at the Wayback Machine Access date October 8 2007 David C Aronstein and Albert C Piccirillo Have Blue and the F 117A Evolution of the Stealth Fighter AIAA 1997 ISBN 1 56347 245 7 a b National Museum of the Air Force North American AGM 28B Hound Dog Fact Sheets North American AGM 28B Hound Dog North American AGM 28B Hound Dog Archived from the original on November 15 2007 Retrieved October 29 2007 Access date October 20 2007 Directory of U S Military Rockets and Missiles AGM 28 7 Archived February 9 2012 at the Wayback Machine Access date October 28 2007 IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN WEBSITE 3 0 Cruise Missiles Of The 1950s amp 1960s 3 0 Cruise Missiles of the 1950s amp 1960s Archived from the original on August 12 2007 Retrieved October 29 2007 Access date October 28 2007 Hound Dog Gets Wings The Blytheville Courier Blytheville Arkansas November 16 1960 p 1 Dorr R amp Peacock L B 52 Stratofortress Boeing s Cold War Warrior Osprey Aviation Great Britain ISBN 1 84176 097 8 AMMS Bases Ammsalumni org Archived from the original on October 2 2011 Retrieved September 28 2011 USAF Serial Number Search Results cgibin rcn com Retrieved May 24 2023 Museum of Aviation AGM 28A Archived from the original on February 2 2018 Retrieved February 20 2018 Bibliography edit Hound Dog Historical Essay by Andreas Parsch Encyclopedia Astronautica website retrieved October 8 2007 Indoor Exhibits Travis Air Museum website retrieved October 8 2007 The Navaho Project A Look Back North American Aviation Retirees Bulletin Summer 2007 Complete List of All U S Nuclear Weapons Nuclear Weapon Archive Website retrieved October 13 2007 B 52 Stratofortress Boeing s Cold War Warrior Dorr R amp Peacock L Osprey Aviation Great Britain ISBN 1 84176 097 8 Hound Dog Fact Sheet Space Line Website retrieved on October 14 2007 Angle of Attack Harrison Storms and the Race to the Moon Mike Gray Penguin 1994 ISBN 978 0 14 023280 6 GAM 77 Hound Dog Missile Boeing Corporate Website retrieved on October 14 2007 North American AGM 28B Hound Dog Aviation Enthusiast Corner Website retrieved on October 21 2007 The USAF and the Cruise Missile Opportunity or Threat Kenneth P Werrell Technology and the Air Force A Retrospective Assessment Air Force History and Museums Program 1997 Airpower Theory and Practice Edited by John Gooch Frank Cass Publishing 1995 ISBN 0 7146 4186 3 Association of the Air Force Missileers Victors in the Cold War Turner Publishing Company 1998 ISBN 1 56311 455 0 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title AGM 28 Hound Dog amp oldid 1190078138, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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