Bigger, Better Nike Slated to Defend City
From the January 23, 1957 edition of the Milwaukee Journal.
The article announces that the current Nike Ajax missile would be replaced by the more-advanced Nike Hercules. The article states that it is not known how many of the eight Milwaukee-area Nike sites would be upgraded and when, but that Milwaukee may be among the last.
Note: In 1959, three of the Milwaukee sites were converted from the Ajax missile to the Hercules. The other five sites were never converted to the Hercules missile and were closed by 1963.
The article text is below.
The article announces that the current Nike Ajax missile would be replaced by the more-advanced Nike Hercules. The article states that it is not known how many of the eight Milwaukee-area Nike sites would be upgraded and when, but that Milwaukee may be among the last.
Note: In 1959, three of the Milwaukee sites were converted from the Ajax missile to the Hercules. The other five sites were never converted to the Hercules missile and were closed by 1963.
The article text is below.
The Milwaukee Journal
January 23, 1957
Bigger, Better Nike Slated to Defend City
Improve Hercules Can Knock Down a Plane at 50 Miles, Army Reports
A bigger, more lethal Nike guided missile to protect American cities from air attack soon will be in operation, the army antiaircraft command said Wednesday.
The improved missile, called the Hercules, will be able to knock down a hostile plane at a distance of 50 miles, the Associated Press reported in a story from Fort Baker, Calif. That would be approximately twice the range of the Ajax, the missile now ready for use.
The seven antiaircraft installations now in operation around Milwaukee are equipped with the Nike Ajax. An eighth battery, at the Maitland field site on the lake front, will be ready for operation in May or June.
May Be Among Last
Major Paul Hagemeier, executive officer of the Milwaukee antiaircraft group, said he knew that the Hercules missile was “in the offing” but had no definite information concerning when the new missile would replace the Ajax here.
He said he assumed that the improved missiles would be “put on the basis of priority” in the same manner as Nike batteries originally were built.
Since Milwaukee was one of the last among major cities to have Nike facilities erected, it probably would be among the last to get the Hercules, he said.
Beside Milwaukee, other cities where the Hercules eventually will replace the Ajax include New York, Boston, Pittsburgh, Washington, Buffalo, Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Direct Hit Not Necessary
The antiaircraft command described the Hercules as able to destroy any of today’s subsonic or supersonic planes. It is controlled by an improved electronic “brain.”
Known as the missile master system, the brain collects target information by radar, feeds it through an intricate computer and, electronically locking onto the missile, directs it to the intruding plane.
Although Ajax and Hercules both are extremely accurate, a direct hit is not necessary to destroy a plane, Nike experts say, because of the terrific blast and fragmentation from a near explotion (sic).
The missile master system is in production by the Glenn L. Martin Co.
The changeover to Hercules and the new control system will be effected (sic) around the country as soon as possible, the antiaircraft command said.
The army expects Hercules, with its ability to reach out twice as far a Ajax, to appreciably reduce the vulnerability of strategic American cities to possible enemy attack.
January 23, 1957
Bigger, Better Nike Slated to Defend City
Improve Hercules Can Knock Down a Plane at 50 Miles, Army Reports
A bigger, more lethal Nike guided missile to protect American cities from air attack soon will be in operation, the army antiaircraft command said Wednesday.
The improved missile, called the Hercules, will be able to knock down a hostile plane at a distance of 50 miles, the Associated Press reported in a story from Fort Baker, Calif. That would be approximately twice the range of the Ajax, the missile now ready for use.
The seven antiaircraft installations now in operation around Milwaukee are equipped with the Nike Ajax. An eighth battery, at the Maitland field site on the lake front, will be ready for operation in May or June.
May Be Among Last
Major Paul Hagemeier, executive officer of the Milwaukee antiaircraft group, said he knew that the Hercules missile was “in the offing” but had no definite information concerning when the new missile would replace the Ajax here.
He said he assumed that the improved missiles would be “put on the basis of priority” in the same manner as Nike batteries originally were built.
Since Milwaukee was one of the last among major cities to have Nike facilities erected, it probably would be among the last to get the Hercules, he said.
Beside Milwaukee, other cities where the Hercules eventually will replace the Ajax include New York, Boston, Pittsburgh, Washington, Buffalo, Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Direct Hit Not Necessary
The antiaircraft command described the Hercules as able to destroy any of today’s subsonic or supersonic planes. It is controlled by an improved electronic “brain.”
Known as the missile master system, the brain collects target information by radar, feeds it through an intricate computer and, electronically locking onto the missile, directs it to the intruding plane.
Although Ajax and Hercules both are extremely accurate, a direct hit is not necessary to destroy a plane, Nike experts say, because of the terrific blast and fragmentation from a near explotion (sic).
The missile master system is in production by the Glenn L. Martin Co.
The changeover to Hercules and the new control system will be effected (sic) around the country as soon as possible, the antiaircraft command said.
The army expects Hercules, with its ability to reach out twice as far a Ajax, to appreciably reduce the vulnerability of strategic American cities to possible enemy attack.