Enduring Stockpile

Enduring Stockpile

The last decade has brought radical changes in the world’s political and military scene, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

The B61 is a parachute-retarded nuclear weapon. The B61 can be dropped at high speeds from altitudes as low as 50 feet. A variety of aircraft carry the B 61 externally or internally. This weapon can be dropped either by free-fall or as parachute-retarded; it can be detonated either by air burst or ground burst. The retarded ground burst is also called “laydown” because the weapon lies on the ground for a period before detonation. This allows the delivery aircraft to escape.

Length: 11 feet, 9.5inches
Diameter: 13.4 inches
Weight: 710 pounds
Stockpiled: 1968
Yield: kiloton range

A variety of aircraft carry the B61 externally or internally. Stockpiled since 1968, the veteran B61 has been modified many times over the years to update its performance. Its latest modification is the B61 Mod 11 “earth-penetrator.” The B61-11 can penetrate and detonate deep below the earth’s surface, creating a massive shock wave capable of destroying underground targets. Designed to replace the aging B53 “laydown” weapon, the much smaller and less powerful B61 can produce the same destructive ground shock as the massive B53, but without the collateral damage associated with a surface blast.

In this photo, two older Mod B61s are seen in front of a F-111. Nicknamed the “Aardvark” because of its long upturned nose, the F-111 was designed in the early 1960s as a long-range interceptor for the U.S. Navy and a deep-strike interdictor for the U.S. Air Force. The prototype flew on December 21, 1964. The F-111 was the first production aircraft to feature a variable-geometry wing system and a fully enclosed escape module for the two side-by-side crewmembers.

In 1983, the U.S. nuclear arsenal acquired the B83 strategic nuclear gravity bomb. The B-52H, B-1B, and B-2 bombers all can carry it. The B83 has delivery and fusing options that include free-fall air or ground burst, retarded air burst, and retarded ground burst or delayed ground burst (or “laydown”). These capabilities make this bomb a full fusing option (FUFO) weapon.

Length: 12 feet
Weight: 2,464 pounds
Stockpiled: 1983
Yield: megaton range

The Trident I Fleet Ballistic Missile carries eight individually targeted RVs. The Trident I missile is a three stage, solid propellant, inertia-guided, submarine-launched fleet ballistic missile. It has a range and payload greater than its predecessors, the Polaris I, II and III and the Poseidon. The increased range of the Trident provides U.S. submarines with a several-fold increase in operational area.