M28/M29 Davy Crockett Weapon System: The Tripod-Mounted Recoilless Rifle That Fired a Nuclear Warhead
Throughout the Cold War, the United States was concerned about the Soviet nuclear threat. As such, the US military constantly came up with weapons designed…
How Many Times Did the World Nearly End During the Cold War? Answer: A Lot
There were numerous times throughout the Cold War where the world nearly ended. The Cuban Missile Crisis, for example, saw the United States and Soviet…
Two KGB and CIA Operatives Were Tasked With Corrupting Each Other – They Forged a Friendship Instead
The KGB and the CIA were notorious enemies during the Cold War. As national security agencies for two warring nations, their operatives were tasked with…
Viktor Belenko: The Soviet Pilot Whose Defection Gave the West Access to the MiG-25
Viktor Belenko was a Soviet pilot who defected to the United States during the height of the Cold War. A number of things make his…
The Nuclear War Between Russia and China That Almost Happened
In the early stages of the Cold War, Americans saw Soviet Russia and China as working together as one Communist “monster,” threatening to destroy everything…
Mars Bluff Incident: The US Air Force Accidentally Dropped a Nuclear Bomb on South Carolina
Starting in the late 1940s and running through to the end of the Cold War, an arms race occurred between the United States and the…
Ronald Reagan’s Star Wars Program Featured Space Lasers for Nuclear Defense
By the 1980s, the threat of nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union was a very real possibility. US President Ronald Reagan…
Lionel Crabb: The Mystery Behind the Missing British Frogman
During the Second World War, there were a variety of special units created to deal with threats from enemies both at home and overseas. One…
The US Air Force Lost An Atomic Bomb Over the Canadian Wilderness
“Broken arrow” is the term used when a nuclear weapon is stolen, lost or unintentionally detonated. It was first used in 1950, when an American…
The US Army Once Tried to Turn a Nerf Football Into a Grenade
The Cold War was a time of near constant military innovation. The frequent advancement of weapons of war required a fast response, which sometimes meant…
John Wheeler and the Missing Papers That Nearly Sparked a Cold War Catastrophe
Even the most brilliant people on the planet can sometimes be a bit absent-minded. John Wheeler certainly fit this category. The theoretical physicist is credited…
Wilbert “Doug” Pearson Is the Only Pilot to Have Scored an Air-to-Space Kill
On September 13, 1985, the US Air Force made history. On this day, the first air-to-space missile was launched, successfully destroying an orbiting satellite. Powerful…