World War 3: How USAF dropped nuclear bomb after mid-air fighter jet crash
WORLD WAR 3 threatened to erupt after a US fighter jet collided with a bomber carrying a nuclear weapon during a training exercise, it can be revealed.
WW2: Pilots discuss crash with live nuclear bomb on board
On February 5, 1958, a US Air Force (USAF) B-47 bomber was on a simulated combat mission from Homestead Air Force Base in Florida. It was carrying a single 3,400kg nuclear bomb, under the control of Major Howard Richardson, who was to out-fly USAF fighter jets imitating Soviet forces. However, although Mr Richardson had been told he had completed the training exercise, one of the F-86 jets did not get the message.
Captain Clarence Stewart was so focused on following the bomber on his military radar, that he crashed into the back of Mr Richardson’s jet.
He laid the details bare during Amazon Prime’s “Phenomenon” series.
He said in 1999: “I had developed a technique where I climbed a little higher and converted the altitude and speed.
“The plane, sure enough, when we turned it on, turned away from us.
So we knew what had happened, we knew it had to be a fighter that hit us
“When I realised that I was extremely close to another plane, I felt the wash from it, the turbulence came out the end of the plane.
“I looked up and there was a sky full of planes.”
Mr Richardson detailed his horror when the F-86 slammed into his bomber.
He said: “We were supposed to be in friendly territory.
“Then all of a sudden the co-pilot and myself saw a flash of light to our right.
“So we knew what had happened, we knew it had to be a fighter that hit us."
Acting quickly, Mr Richardson knew he had to drop nuclear weapons on board to protect his crew if a full-scale crash happened.
He decided to jettison the bomb in the waters surrounding Tybee Island near Savannah, Georgia.
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Some sources describe the bomb as a functional nuclear weapon while others said it was disabled but the USAF has never confirmed its status.
If the bomb had a plutonium nuclear core installed, it was a fully functional weapon, meaning a nuclear explosion could have occurred.
The event came at the height of the Cold War and an explosion could have crossed the nuclear threshold to give the USSR an excuse to retaliate.
Mr Stewart managed to successfully bail from his fighter jet, landing in a wooded area of Southern Carolina.
The B-47 made a near-impossible landing at a nearby airfield and Mr Richardson was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his efforts.
Starting on February 6, 1958, the Air Force 2700th Explosive Ordnance Disposal Squadron and 100 Navy personnel equipped with hand-held sonar and galvanic drag and cable sweeps mounted a search.
On April 16 the same year, the military announced the search had been unsuccessful and it has still not been found to this day.
It was not the last embarrassment for USAF, though.
On January 17, 1966, a B-52G USAF bomber collided with a KC-135 tanker during a refuelling mission at 31,000 feet over the Mediterranean Sea.
During the crash, three MK28-type hydrogen bombs headed for land in the small fishing village of Palomares in Almeria, Spain.
Worse still, the explosives in two of the weapons detonated on impact, contaminating the surrounding area of almost one square mile with plutonium.
The fourth sunk off the coast of Spain and was recovered three months later.