W25

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Plumbbob John Nuclear Test, a live test of nuclear AIR-2A Genie rocket on July 19th 1957. Fired by an US Airforce F-89J over Yucca Flats Nuclear Test Site at an altitude of ~15,000 ft (4.5 km or about 3 miles up).

The W25 was a small nuclear warhead developed by the United States Air Force and Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory for air-defense use. It was a fission device with a nominal yield of 1.7 kT. Development of the weapon began in 1954 at the behest of Douglas Aircraft for use against enemy bombers.

The W25 was used for the MB-1 "Ding Dong", an unguided air-to-air rocket used by the F-89 Scorpion, F-101B, and F-106 interceptor aircraft. The MB-1 entered service in 1957, and was eventually redesignated the AIR-2 Genie. Limited numbers were still used for Air National Guard F-106 aircraft until December 1984.

[edit] Description

The W25 is 17.4 inches in diameter and 26.6 inches long, with a reported weight of 218-221 pounds.^[1] As noted above, yield was a relatively low 1.7 kilotons.

The W25 was described as a composite pit (utilizing both Uranium and Plutonium), unboosted, and the first US sealed pit design. A sealed pit means that a solid metal barrier is formed around the pit or nuclear material components inside a nuclear weapon, with no openings. This protects the nuclear materials from environmental degradation and helps reduce the chances of their release in case of an accidental fire or minor explosion.

The Genie was still active at Active Duty AFB in 1985 (K.I. Sawyer AFB Mi. 87 Fighter Intercepter Squadron