Nuclear bomb, lost in 1950, possibly found by diver

[Steven P. Administrators]

 

Quote

A commercial diver may have discovered a lost nuclear bomb off the coast of British Columbia near the Haida Gwaii archipelago.

Sean Smyrichinsky was diving for sea cucumbers when he discovered a large metal device that looked a bit like a flying saucer.

The Canadian Department of National Defence (DND) believes it could be the "lost nuke" from an American B-36 bomber that crashed in the area in 1950.

The government does not believe the bomb contains nuclear material. It is sending naval ships out to the site to verify the find.

Full story on the BBC http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-37875697

 

I don't think this is the same bomb that was lost in the 60's then (wasn't that near Egypt and also never recovered?) Anyway cool nonetheless considering they found the plane wreckage miles inland, and no bomb  Although the crew claim they dropped it in the Ocean. 

[DocM]

A Mark IV aluminum cased practice bomb, ditched to lighten the plane.

 

The explosive pit in the live ones wasn't installed until they received attack orders, so all that would normally be in the case are the high explosive lenses which compress the pit for detonation and the electronics. Part of the lens assembly was removable to allow pit insertion.

Edited November 7, 2016 by DocM

[Draggendrop Veteran]

If it is this...

 

 

Being an old fart and a cold war veteran, I sometimes think that we are our own worse enemies at times...

 

Truth can be stranger than fiction....case in point.
 
The following can be treated as my opinion only but there is an enormous amount of data online and in print.

 

When verified, this bomb could be the first Broken Arrow in the history of nuclear weapons.

 

First we shall clear up some details. The Mark 4N was an aluminium container for practice bombs. The Mark 4 had a 2830 pound steel casing. These units used explosives surrounding a clamshell of uranium 238. The "birdcage" was, at first, wire hung and later models used the aluminium cage for the plutonium.The inner "pit" was the one removed with the plutonium to disable a nuclear explosion, generally not the outer "pit". Standard procedure was not to fly with a plutonium "pit" onboard the aircraft when transporting the weapon, which we now know was not always followed. This particular aircraft was stated as being in international waters and the plane dumped into the Pacific which was proven to be the first nuclear aircraft coverup as well. The Canadian government was told that the incident was a 500 pound TNT bomb, later proved false as well. 

 

"Just before midnight on February 13, 1950, three engines of a US Air Force B-36 intercontinental bomber caught fire over Canada’s northwest coast. The crew jumped, and the plane ditched somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Almost four years later, the wreck of the bomber was found accidentally in a remote location in the coastal mountains of British Columbia, three hours’ flying time in the opposite direction of where it was supposed to have crashed. After years of silence, the United States finally admitted to losing its very first nuclear bomb; the incident was its first Broken Arrow, the code name for accidents involving nuclear weapons."

 

http://www.heritagehouse.ca/book_details.php?isbn_upc=9781772031287

 

The USAF later admitted that it was a Mark 4, with a substantial amount of uranium as well as 5000 pounds of explosives, but no plutonium cage. More on that later....

 

Plane 44-92075, was flying on a simulated nuclear strike combat mission against the Soviet Union.The B-36 took off from Eielson AFB with a regular crew of 15 plus a Weaponeer and a Bomb Commander. 12 of the crew were rescued by the RCAF, one body found later in a fishing net and possibly one at the crash site which was turned into a restricted area, which is very unusual for Canada, unless contamination was involved.

 

The crash site was found 3 years later by the RCAF, while searching for another plane.  It was found on the side of Mount Kologet, about 50 miles (80 km) east of the Alaskan border.

 

"The USAF immediately began an investigation. A team was sent in September 1953, as the effort was given a high priority, but they failed to reach the site after 19 days of trudging through the wilderness. The effort was resumed the following year with better equipment, and in August 1954 a new team of USAF personnel accompanied by a local guide reached the wreckage. They recovered important components and then used explosives to destroy what was visible above the snow."

 

"In 1956, two civilian surveyors chanced on the wreck and noted its exact location, which otherwise remained unknown for the next 40 years. In 1997 one of the surveyors provided the coordinates to two distinct expeditions, one American and one led by the Canadian Department of National Defence, seeking to conduct an environmental analysis of the site. Both expeditions reached the wreck around the same time, and members were apparently the first humans to set foot in the area since 1956. The Canadian-led mission found no unusual radiation levels. In late 1998, the Canadian government declared the site protected. A portion of one of the gun turrets is on display at The Bulkley Valley Museum in Smithers, British Columbia."

The item spotted by a Canadian diver, was positively ID'd to be the Mark 4, once shown a photo of it. The Canadian Navy will be investigating the situation. They will find a steel casing with a uranium 238 clamshell but it may not be mentioned right away, but it is already known because 10 months after this crash, we got another one that was worse.

-----------

 

"The 1950 Rivière-du-Loup B-50 nuclear weapon loss incident refers to loss of a nuclear weapon near Rivière-du-Loup, Quebec, Canada, during the fall of 1950. The bomb was released due to engine troubles, and then was destroyed in a non-nuclear detonation before it hit the ground."

 

"Returning one of several US Mark 4 nuclear bombs secretly deployed in Canada, a USAF Boeing B-50 Superfortress had engine trouble and jettisoned the weapon at 10,500 feet (3,200 m). The crew set the bomb to self-destruct at 2,500 ft (760 m), and released it over the St. Lawrence River. The non-nuclear explosion shook area residents and scattered nearly 100 pounds (45 kg) of moderately radioactive uranium (U-238) used in the weapon's tamper. The plutonium core ("pit"), which is the key component for a nuclear reaction and detonation, was not installed in the bomb at the time. The absence of the core probably was due to their cost and relative scarcity at the time."

 

"Standard US Air Force protocol prohibited any aircraft carrying a nuclear device to land with the device if the aircraft was experiencing engine problems. It had to be jettisoned. The plutonium trigger was always removed prior to flight and shipped separately to prevent accidental nuclear activation. This also was standard protocol. At the time of the incident, the aircraft was returning from CFB Goose Bay to Davis–Monthan Air Force Base. The troubled aircraft successfully landed at an Air Force Base in Maine."

 

"The incident was immediately covered up at the time, and explained away as 500-pound (230 kg) military practice bombs being detonated. It was not until the 1980s that the Air Force confirmed it was a nuclear incident."

 

Within 10 months, Canada gets hit by two Mark 4's, one being a dirty bomb.....

 

Today, in Canada, another country has to declare if a nuclear device is onboard, if no declaration is made, you get the parking spot offshore!   We don't take chances with these weapons.

 

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-37875697

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/ufo-lost-cold-war-nuclear-weapon-canada-s-navy-to-investigate-object-found-off-b-c-coast-1.3835542

http://www.heritagehouse.ca/book_details.php?isbn_upc=9781772031287

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_4_nuclear_bomb

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_and_radiation_accidents_and_incidents

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Aviation_accidents_and_incidents_involving_nuclear_weapons

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1950_British_Columbia_B-36_crash

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1950_Rivière-du-Loup_B-50_nuclear_weapon_loss_incident

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_military_nuclear_accidents

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_military_nuclear_incident_terminology

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_of_nuclear_disasters_and_radioactive_incidents

http://tridentploughshares.org/summary-of-nuclear-weapon-accidents/

use the publications in the wiki...

 

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Now for a good note, Ex President Jimmy Carter...aka Jimmy Nuetron, helped us out in the "1952, "secret" at the time", Chalk River, Ontario, research reactor meltdown and we returned the favor by getting 6 diplomats out of Iran.....not the way the fictional movie of late, was done. Fond memories of ex-President Carter, a man with a big heart, outstanding bravery and a good friend of Canada. 

 

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ottawa-notebook/jimmy-neutron-ex-president-carter-recalls-role-in-chalk-river-meltdown/article614379/
 

In 2 years, two Mark 4's dropped, one of which was a dirty bomb, and a reactor meltdown....stranger than fiction!   

[Shiranui]

Try hitting it with a hammer.

[The Evil Overlord]

NO NUKES, NO NUKES, NO NUKES!!!  

[techbeck]

11 minutes ago, Shiranui said:

Try hitting it with a hammer.