The Day We Lost the H-Bomb

by Barbara Moran

  Hubbell, John G. “The Case of the Missing H-Bomb.” Reader’s Digest, September 1966.

  Iranzo, E., et al. “Air Concentrations of 239Pu and 240Pu and Potential Radiation Doses to Persons Living near Pu-Contaminated Areas in Palomares, Spain.” Health Physics 52, no. 4, April 1987.

  Iranzo, Emma, et al. “Resuspension in the Palomares Area of Spain: A Summary of Experimental Studies.” Journal of Aerosol Science 25, no. 5, 1994.

  “Is It or Isn’t It?” Newsweek, March 28, 1966.

  Johnson, Leland. Sandia National Laboratories: A History of Exceptional Service in the National Interest. Albuquerque, N.M.: Sandia National Laboratories, 1997.

  “Johnson Rebuffs de Gaulle Quickly in Bases Dispute.” The New York Times, March 9, 1966.

  Kaharl, Victoria. Water Baby: The Story of Alvin. New York: Oxford University Press, 1990.

  Kahn, E. J. “Good Manners and Common Sense.” The New Yorker, August 15, 1964.

  Kaplan, Fred. The Wizards of Armageddon. New York: Simon &Schuster, 1983.

  Kohn, Richard H., and Joseph P. Harahan, eds. Strategic Air Warfare: An Interview with Generals Curtis E. LeMay, Leon W. Johnson, David Burchinal, and Jack Catton. Washington, D.C.: Office of Air Force History, 1988.

  Kramer, Andrew E. “Recalling Cold War, Russia Resumes Long-Range Sorties.” The New York Times, August 18, 2007.

  Larus, Joel. Nuclear Weapons Safety and the Common Defense. Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 1967.

  LeMay, Curtis, with MacKinlay Kantor. Mission with LeMay: My Story. New York: Doubleday and Company, 1965.

  “LeMay Discusses Air War of Future.” The New York Times, November 20, 1945.

  “LeMay Says Flaw Has Delayed B-52; 31 of 78 Rejected.” The New York Times, May 3, 1956.

  “LeMay Sees Peril to Nation by 1959: Gives Senators ‘Guess’ That Soviet Surprise Attack Could Destroy U.S.” The New York Times, May 27, 1956.

  Leviero, Anthony “Air Critics Omit Navy and B-47’s, Eisenhower Says. Public Will Feel ‘Lot Better’ When Full Story Is Told, President Promises.” The New York Times, May 5, 1956.

  —. “Big Russian Jets Estimated at 100.” The New York Times, May 4, 1956.

  —. “General LeMay Fears Soviet Lead in Air by 1960.” The New York Times, May 1, 1956.

  —. “3.8 Billion More a Year Is Sought in Bomber Funds.” The New York Times, June 12, 1956.

  Lewis, Flora. One of Our H-Bombs Is Missing. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1967.

  Lloyd, Alwyn T A Cold War Legacy: A Tribute to the Strategic Air Command, 1946–1992.

  Missoula, Mont.: Pictorial Histories Publishing Company, 1999.

  Man’s Extension into the Sea. Symposium Proceedings, January 11–12, 1966. Washington, D.C.: Marine Technology Society, 1966.

  Martin, George W. “Lasting Legacies of Thresher.” The Submarine Review, July 2003.

  —. “The Search for Thresher.” The Submarine Review, April 2003.

  May, Mike. “Gas Stations in the Sky.” Invention &Technology 19, no. 4, Spring 2004

  Maydew, Randall C. America’s Lost H-Bomb! Palomares, Spain, 1966. Manhattan, Kans.: Sunflower University Press, 1997.

  Maydew, Randall C, ed. A Kansas Farm Family. Freeman, S. Dak.: Pine Hill Press, 1992.

  McCamis, Marvin J. “Captain Hook’s Hunt for the H-Bomb.” Oceanus 31, no. 4, Winter 1988–89.

  McDowell, Bart, and Albert Moldvay. “The Changing Face of Old Spain.” National Geographic, March 1965.

  Melson, Lewis B. “Contact 261.” U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings 93, no. 6, June 1967.

  Méndez, Rafael. “Detectada contaminación en Palomares fuera de las zonas expropiadas y valladas.” El País, July 1, 2007.

  —. “España halla las zanjas radiactivas que EEUU ocultó en Palomares.” El País, April 4, 2008.

  Miller, James E., ed. Foreign Relations of the United States, 1964–1968. Vol. 2: Western Europe.

  Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2001.

  “The Missing H-Bomb.” The Boston Globe, March 4, 1966.

  Mitchell, Eugene B., and William I. Milwee. “Recovery of Alvin—A Practical Ocean Engineering Operation.” Naval Engineers Journal, December 1969.

  Moody, D. H. “40th Anniversary of Palomares.” Faceplate 10, no. 2, September 2006.

  Moody, Walton S. Building a Strategic Air Force. Washington, D.C.: Air Force History and Museums Program, 1996.

  Moïse, Edwin E. Tonkin Gulf and the Escalation of the Vietnam War. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1996.

  Morland, Howard. “The H-Bomb Secret.” The Progressive, November 1979.

  Morris, John D. “Soviet ICBM Held Able to Pinpoint 5,000-Mile Target.” The New York Times, January 31, 1959.

  Moscow, Warren. “Center of Tokyo Devastated by Firebombs.” The New York Times, March 11, 1945.

  Narducci, Henry M. Strategic Air Command and the Alert Program: A Brief History. Offutt Air Force Base, Neb.: Office of the Historian, Headquarters Strategic Air Command, April 1, 1988.

  “Narrative Summaries of Accidents Involving U.S. Nuclear Weapons 1950–1980.” Undated.

  (NNSA, FOIA.)

  National Intelligence Estimate 11–4-61: Main Trends in Soviet Capabilities and Policies, 1961–

  1966. U.S. Director of Central Intelligence. RG 263, Box 16, Folder 9. (NARA.)

  “Naval Forces under the Sea: A Look Back, a Look Ahead.” Symposium Proceedings, March 27–29, 2001. Flagstaff, Ariz.: Best Publishing Company, 2002.

  Naval Ordnance Test Station, Pasadena Annex. AirsalopsMed/CURV Notes, 1966.

  “New Diplomatic Hand.” Newsweek, January 11, 1965. Angier Biddle Duke Papers, Box 66.

  (Duke.)

  Norris, John G. “Lessons Thresher Taught Didn’t Help with H-Bomb.” The Washington Post, March 27, 1966.

  Norris, Robert S., William M. Arkin, and William Burr. Nuclear Weapons Databook Working Paper 87–1 (Rev. 1): US-USSR Strategic Offensive Nuclear Forces 1946–1987. Washington, D.C.: Natural Resources Defense Council, December 1987.

  —. “Where They Were.” The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, November-December 1999.

  “Officials Take Cold Dip to Deny H-Bomb Hazard.” The Washington Post, March 9, 1966.

  Olid, Miguel. “Luz sobre Palomares.” El País. Undated.

  “On Arms and Aid.” The New York Times, Week in Review, May 13, 1956.

  “On Continuous Alert.” The New York Times Magazine, December 8, 1957.

  Oreskes, Naomi. “A Context of Motivation: U.S. Naval Oceanographic Research and the Discovery of Sea-Floor Hydrothermal Vents.” Social Studies of Science 33, no. 5, October 2003.

  Oulahan, Richard. “The Case of the Missing H-Bomb.” Life, February 25, 1966.

  Palomares Nuclear Weapons Accident: Revised Dose Evaluation Report. U.S. Department of the Air Force, Air Force Medical Service, April 2001. (FOIA.)

  Pinilla, Pedro Martínez, et al. “Evolución de la mortalidad en Palomares antes y después del accidente nuclear de 1966.” El Médico 16, no. 1, 1987.

  Place, W. M., et al. Palomares Summary Report. Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M.: Field Command, Defense Nuclear Agency, Technology and Analysis Directorate, January 15, 1975.

  Plaza, José Herrera, and Antonio Sánchez Picón. Operación “Flecha Rota”: Accidente nuclear en Palomares (Almería). Almería, Spain: Consejería de Cultura, Centro Andaluz de la Fotografía, 2003.

  Podvig, Pavel, ed. Russian Strategic Nuclear Forces. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2004.

  Polmar, Norman. The Death of the USS Thresher: The Story Behind History’s Deadliest Submarine Disaster. Guilford, Conn.: Lyons Press, 1964.

  Polmar, Norman, and Timothy M. Laur, eds. Strategic Air Command: People, Aircraft and Missiles.

  2nd ed. Baltimore, Md.: Nautical and Aviation Publishing Company of America, 1990.

  Pothier, Richard. “Star of Deep for Six Years, She’s to Be a Sub on Bench.” The Miami Herald, undated.

  “Power Airs S
AC Deterrent Capability.” Aviation Week, April 20, 1959.

  Rae, Bruce. “300 B-29’s Fire 15 Square Miles of Tokyo.” The New York Times, March 10, 1945.

  Rainnie, William O. “Alvin… and the Bomb.” Oceanus 12, no., August 1966.

  —. “Equipment and Instrumentation for the Navigation of Submersibles.” Undated. DSV Alvin Records, 1949–1998 AC 18, Box 17, Folder 23: Navigation, General. (WHOI.)

  —. “How We Found the Missing H-Bomb.” Popular Mechanics, August 1966.

  Rainnie, William O., and William I. Milwee. “How We Raised the Alvin from 5000 Feet.” Popular Mechanics, January 1970.

  Raymond, Jack. “President Sees Dangers in Full Mobilization Now.” The New York Times, March 5, 1959.

  Recollections for Tomorrow. Albuquerque, N.M.: Sandia National Laboratories, 1989.

  Recovery of Deep Research Vehicle Alvin. NAVSHIPS 0994-004-5010. U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Ship Systems Command. Washington, D.C.: Naval Ship Systems Command, December 1969.

  Reed, Thomas C. At the Abyss: An Insider’s History of the Cold War. New York: Ballantine Books, 2004

  Report of Major Aircraft Accident, KC-135A, 61–0273, B-52G, 58–256. Directorate of Safety, Sixteenth Air Force, U.S. Department of the Air Force. January 31, 1966. (FOIA.) Reynolds Aluminum. Aluminaut: The Deep Diving Aluminum Submarine. Brochure, undated.

  (SMV.)

  Rhodes, Richard. Dark Sun: The Making of the Hydrogen Bomb. New York: Simon &Schuster, 1995.

  —. The Making of the Atomic Bomb. New York: Simon &Schuster, 1986.

  Richardson, Henry. Diary, March 15 to April 7, 1966. Author’s collection.

  Richmond, C. R. “Remarks on Palomares — Seven Years Later,” March 9, 1973. (NNSA, FOIA.) Rosenberg, David Alan. “‘A Smoking Radiating Ruin at the End of Two Hours’: Documents on American Plans for Nuclear War with the Soviet Union, 1954–1955.” International Security 6, no. 3, Winter 1981–82.

  Rubottom, R. Richard, and J. Carter Murphy. Spain and the United States since World War II. New York: Praeger Publishers, 1984.

  “Russians Accuse U.S. in B-52 Crash.” The New York. Times, February 18, 1966.

  Rutherfurd, Jay. “Duke’s ‘Swim-in’ for Spanish Tourism Best Water Show since Aquacade.” Variety, March 16, 1966.

  SAC Historical Study #109: Sixteenth Air Force Operation Recovery, 17 January–7 April, 1966, vols. 1 and 1A. History and Research Division, Headquarters Strategic Air Command, U.S.

  Department of the Air Force, April 1968. (FOIA.)

  “SAC’s Deadly Daily Dozen.” Time, March 17, 1961.

  Sagan, Scott D. The Limits of Safety: Organizations, Accidents and Nuclear Weapons. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton Studies in International History and Politics, 1993.

  Salisbury, Karen. “Defense: Bombers at the Ready.” Newsweek, April 18, 1949.

  Shapley, Deborah. Promise and Power: The Life and Times of Robert McNamara. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1993.

  Simons, Howard. “Intensive, Expensive Hunt under Way to Locate H-Bomb Lost over Spain.” The Washington Post, February 24, 1966.

  —. “Lost H-Bomb Is Recovered by U.S. Ship.” The Washington Post, April 8, 1966.

  —. “Some Experts Fear Strategic Loss if Curbs Are Put on Nuclear Routes.” The Washington Post, February 27, 1966.

  —. “U.S. Faces an Unending Cleanup Task.” The Washington Post, February 25, 1966.

  —. “U.S. Finally Admits Loss of H-Bomb over Spain.” The Washington Post, March 3, 1966.

  —. “U.S. to Hunt Weapon until Certain It Can’t Be Found — by Friend or Foe.” The Washington Post, February 26, 1966.

  “600 Spanish March in Anti-US. Protest.” The New York Times, February 5, 1966.

  “Some B-52’s in Air around the Clock: S.A.C. Begins Training for Possible Establishment of an Airborne Alert.” The New York Times, January 19, 1961.

  “Soviet Asks World Check on U.S. H-Bomb off Spain.” The New York Times, March 19, 1966.

  Spaatz, Carl. “Strategic Air Power: Fulfillment of a Concept.” Foreign Affairs, April 1946.

  “Spain: the Awakening Land.” Time, January 21, 1966.

  Springer, Roy M., et al. “Palomares/Navy.” Combat Readiness, October-December 1966.

  “Staff Study by Systems Analysis Team of Search Operations,” February 7, 1966. Document no.

  SAC200118390000. Secret. (NNSA, FOIA.)

  Stannard, J. Newell. Radioactivity and Health, A History, vol. 2: Environmental Aspects. Richland, Wash.: Pacific Northwest Laboratory, 1988.

  Stiles, David. “A Fusion Bomb over Andalucía: U.S. Information Policy and the 1966 Palomares Incident.” Journal of Cold War Studies 8, no. 1, Winter 2006.

  Storms, Barbara. “When the Sky Fell.” The Atom, May 1966. (LANL, FOIA.) The Strategic Air Command Alert Force: History and Philosophy (Briefing). Offutt Air Force Base, Neb.: Office of the Historian, Headquarters Strategic Air Command, September 1, 1988.

  Streeter, Michael. Franco. London: Haus Publishing, 2005.

  Stuart, John. “Army Air Leaders Want U.S. on Guard for Sudden Attack.” The New York Times, October 2, 1945.

  “Sub Finds H-Bomb off Spain: Weapon Reported Intact in Water 2500 Feet Deep.” The Washington Post, March 18, 1966.

  “Swimming Party.” Newsweek, March 14, 1966.

  Szulc, Tad. The Bombs of Palomares. London: Victor Gollancz, 1967.

  —. “Dented H-Bomb Is Displayed on Recovery Ship.” The New York Times, April 9, 1966.

  —. “H-Bomb Is Recovered Intact after 80 Days.” The New York Times, April 8, 1966.

  —. “H-Bomb Searchers Fail Again as Sea Cable Snaps.” The New York Times, March 26, 1966.

  —. “Palomares Learns to Love the Bomb.” The New York Times Magazine, February 20, 1966.

  —. “U.S. Envoy Swims Where H-Bomb Fell.” The New York Times, March 9, 1966.

  Tanner, Henry. “De Gaulle Insists on Rule of Bases of NATO in France.” The New York Times, February 22, 1966.

  “Texts of Franco and Eisenhower Talks.” The New York Times, December 22, 1959.

  Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. New York: Harper &Row, 1961.

  “Tossing a Curv.” Business Week, April 16, 1966.

  Toth, Robert C. “H-Bomb May Slip into Deep Sea Crevice, Balk Recovery.” Los Angeles Times, March 22, 1966.

  —. “New Bomb Recovery Try Slated.” Los Angeles Times, March 23, 1966.

  —. “Recovery Operations to Raise H-Bomb Begin in Rough Seas.” Los Angeles Times, March 19, 1966.

  —. “Soviet Spy Ship Watches U.S. Hunt Bomb.” Los Angeles Times, March 8, 1966.

  —. “Spanish Town Could Have Been a Hiroshima.” Los Angeles Times, March 13, 1966.

  —. “Submarine Tows Lost H-Bomb up Sea Slope toward Recovery.” Los Angeles Times, March 20, 1966.

  USAF Nuclear Safety, Special Edition: Project Crested Ice 65 (part 2), no. 1, U.S. Department of the Air Force, Jan — Feb — Mar 1970.

  “U.S. Bars H-Bombs in Airborne Alert.” The New York Times, February 29, 1968.

  “Vital Contributions Made by Sandia in Locating Lost Nuclear Weapon.” Sandia Lab News, April 22, 1966. (SNL.)

  Weart, Spencer R. Nuclear Fear: A History of Images. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1988.

  Welles, Benjamin. “Eisenhower Gets Franco’s Support.” The New York Times, December 23, 1959.

  —. “Eisenhower Is Hailed in Madrid.” The New York Times, December 22, 1959.

  —. “Franco Aide’s Visit to Highlight Improving U.S. Ties with Spain.” The New York Times, December 30, 1959.

  —. “Franco’s Prestige High as He Awaits Eisenhower’s Visit.” The New York Times, December 19, 1959.

  —. “Spain Offers 3 Proposals on Gibraltar.” The New York Times, May 27, 1966.

  Whitaker, Arthur P. Spain and the Defense of the West: Ally and Liability. New York: Harper

  &Brothers, 1961.

  Wilford, John Noble. “Gemini 8 Crew Is For
ced Down in Pacific after Successful Linkup with Satellite; Spacemen Picked Up after 3 Hours in Sea.” The New York Times, March 17, 1966.

  —. “Gemini Is Fueled for Link-up Today.” The New York Times, March 16, 1966.

  Wilson, Delmar E. Speech to Residents of Palomares and Villaricos. March 20, 1966. (USAF, FOIA.)

  Winkler, Allan M. Life under a Cloud: American Anxiety about the Atom. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993.

  Witkin, Richard. “S.A.C. Operating New Alert Program: Aims to Get Third of Bomber Force Airborne within 15 Minutes after Attack.” The New York Times, November 11, 1957.

  Wolk, Herman S. Toward Independence: The Emergence of the U.S. Air Force 1945–1947.

  Washington, D.C.: Air Force History and Museums Program, 1996.

  Worden, Mike. Rise of the Fighter Generals: The Problem of Air Force Leadership, 1945–1982.

  Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.: Air University Press, March 1998.

  LETTERS, CABLES, AND MEMOS

  Airgram, Embassy in Madrid to Department of State, “U.S. Policy Assessment,” May 7, 1966.

  National Security File, Country File, Spain, Spain memos vol. 1, Box 204. Confidential. (LBJ.) Airgram, Embassy in Madrid to Department of State, “Undersecretary Rostow’s Conversation with Joaquín Ruiz-Giménez,” December 24, 1966. National Security File, Country File, Spain, Spain Cables vol. 1, Box 204 Confidential. (LBJ.)

  Cable, from 16th AF Torrejón AB Spain to RUEKDA/Secretary of Defense, January, 1966, #61642.

  National Security File, Country File, Spain 1/17/66, TS/RD B-52/KC-135 Accident, Box 204.

  Secret. (LBJ.)

  Cable, from CINCLANTFLT, undated, #70834. National Security File, Country File, Spain 1/17/66, TS/RD B-52/KC-135 Accident, Box 204. Secret. (LBJ.)

  Cable, CSAF to Joint Chiefs of Staff et al., January 19, 1966, #53337. National Security File, Country File, Spain 1/17/66, TS/RD B-52/KC-135 Accident, Box 204. Secret. (LBJ.) Cable, CSAF to Joint Chiefs of Staff et al., January 19, 1966, #59032. National Security File, Country File, Spain 1/17/66, TS/RD B-52/KC-135 Accident, Box 204. Secret. (LBJ.) Cable, CTF Sixty-five to REUCW/CNO, “Sitrep Seventy-nine,” March 16, 1966. National Security File, Country File, Spain 1/17/66, TS/RD B-52/KC-135 Accident, Box 204. Confidential. (LBJ.) Cable, DASA to RUECW/CNO, January 21, 1966, #51711. National Security File, Country File, Spain 1/17/66, TS/RD B-52/KC-135 Accident, Box 204. Secret. (LBJ.) Cable, Department of Defense, January 23, 1966, #65908. National Security File, Country File, Spain 1/17/66, TS/RD B-52/KC-135 Accident, Box 204. Secret. (LBJ.) Cable, Department of State to Embassy in Madrid, January 17, 1966, Deptel 08319. National Security File, Country File, Spain 1/17/66, TS/RD B-52/KC-135 Accident, Box 204. Confidential.