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The AIM-26 Falcon was a larger, more powerful version of the AIM-4 Falcon air-to-air missile built by Hughes. It is the only guided American air-to-air missile with a nuclear warhead to be produced; the unguided AIR-2 Genie rocket was also nuclear-armed.


Development


Starting in 1956 Hughes Electronics began the development of an enlarged version of the GAR-1D Falcon that would carry a nuclear warhead. It was intended to provide a sure kill in attacks on Soviet heavy bomber aircraft, at a time when guided missiles were not accurate enough to produce high-probability kills with small conventional warheads. The original development was for semi-active radar homing and heat-seeking versions based on the conventional GAR-1/GAR-2 weapons, under the designations GAR-5 and GAR-6, respectively. The original program was cancelled.

Artwork on warhead of AIM-26A on display at the National Museum of Naval Aviation.
Artwork on warhead of AIM-26A on display at the National Museum of Naval Aviation.

The program was revived in 1959, now under the name GAR-11. It entered service in 1961, carried by Air Defense Command F-102 Delta Dagger interceptors.[1] It used a radar proximity fuze and semi-active radar homing. The GAR-11 used a sub-kiloton (250 ton) yield W54 warhead shared with the "Davy Crockett" M388 recoilless rifle projectile,[2] rather than the larger W25 warhead of the AIR-2 Genie.[3]

Out of concern for the problems inherent in using nuclear weapons over friendly territory, a conventional version, the GAR-11A, was developed, using a 40 lb (18 kg) high explosive warhead.


Conventional warhead


As part of a wider Army/Navy/Air Force renaming project, in 1963 the weapon was redesignated AIM-26. The nuclear version became the AIM-26A, the conventional model the AIM-26B. From 1970 to 1972 the nuclear warheads of the AIM-26A weapons were rebuilt for the nuclear version of the AGM-62 Walleye TV guided bomb.

The AIM-26 saw little widespread use in American service, retiring in 1972. The conventional AIM-26B was exported to Switzerland as the HM-55, where it was used on Swiss Mirage IIIS fighters. The AIM-26B was produced under license (and modified) in Sweden as the Rb 27, arming Saab Draken J-35F and 35J fighters. It was retired in 1998. When Finland bought Drakens, the license-manufactured Swedish Falcons were included.


Specifications (GAR-11/AIM-26A)



Survivors


Below is an incomplete list of museums which have an AIM-26 in their collection:


See also



References


Wikimedia Commons has media related to AIM-26 Falcon.
  1. Hansen 1988, pp. 146.
  2. Hansen, Chuck (1988). US Nuclear Weapons: The Secret History. Aerofax. pp. 105–107, 146, 178–179, 198. ISBN 0517567407.
  3. Hansen 1988, pp. 176–178.

На других языках

[de] AIM-26 Falcon

Hughes AIM-26 Falcon ist eine infrarot- oder radargelenkte Luft-Luft-Lenkwaffe der Firma Hughes Aerospace Group. Die Lenkwaffe konnte mit einem Nuklearsprengkopf bestückt werden. Die ursprünglich von der USAF für die Falcon vorgesehene Bezeichnung war XF-98, womit die Rakete formal in die Reihe der US-Jagdflugzeuge eingegliedert wurde.[1]
- [en] AIM-26 Falcon

[fr] AIM-26 Falcon

Le AIM-26 Falcon fut le premier véritable missile air-air à charge nucléaire opérationnel au sein de l’US Air Force (USAF)[note 1].

[it] AIM-26 Falcon

L'AIM-26 Falcon era un missile aria-aria con guida a infrarossi, versione potenziata dell'AIM-4 Falcon costruito dalla The DirecTV Group. Fu l'unico missile aria-aria delle forze armate aeree statunitensi dotato di testata nucleare.

[ru] AIM-26 Falcon

AIM-26 «Фэлкон» (англ. AIM-26 Falcon [fɔ:lkən] — Сокол) — американская управляемая ракета класса «воздух—воздух» с ядерной боевой частью. Единственная управляемая[2] ракета «воздух-воздух» с ядерной боевой частью, когда-либо принятая на вооружение ВВС США. Из-за низкой надёжности, ограниченных возможностей системы наведения и появления достаточно совершенных ракет с боевыми частями в обычном снаряжении, оставалась на вооружении недолго и в 1972 году была списана.


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