Cold War Archives - We Are The Mighty

Airborne soldiers host podcast on Army’s Cold War history

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Soldiers assigned to the XVIII Airborne Corps board a C-130 Hercules from the Rhode Island Air National Guard before an Airborne operation at Sicily Drop Zone on Fort Bragg, N.C., Feb. 23, 2017. (U.S. Army Photo by Hubert D. Delany III/22nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)ShareTweetEmailWhatsApp The XVIII Airborne Corps, stationed out of Fort Bragg, North … Continued

Buran: How the Soviets stole the Space Shuttle

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Although America’s space shuttle was not the budget-friendly platform it was intended to be, the program was so successful that the Soviet Union decided to build their own. Unbeknownst to most, they actually did, and it even flew in space. On April 12, 1981, NASA’s Space Shuttle Columbia roared to life for the first time. … Continued

This bomber made the B-52 look puny

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The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress has the nickname “Big Ugly Fat F***er” — or just the BUFF — but is it the biggest bomber that ever served? Believe it or not, that answer is, “No.”

There was a much bigger bomber in the fleet — an…

That time we almost launched the atomic bomb on North Korea

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On November 30, 1950, the United States was deeply entrenched in the Korean War after suffering a surprise attack on its troops. On this day, President Truman issued the thinly veiled threat of using the Atomic Bomb against North Korea. The devastating effects and impact following the dropping of the ‘Little Boy’ and ‘Fat Man’ nuclear … Continued

6 Cold War sites you can visit in America

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For decades, America was convinced that the Soviet Union was going to nuke the country and possibly the world. Even though the US and Russia were allies during WWII, once the war stopped, that partnership ended. Postwar Soviet expansion and takeovers of many Eastern European countries fueled plenty of fears of communism. Americans had long … Continued

Great Falls Nike Fire Control Site W-83 played a critical role in the creation of GPS

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During the Cold War’s arms buildup, there were 13 Nike Missile sites erected around the greater Washington D.C. and Baltimore areas. Project Nike was a U.S. Army project proposed in 1945 by Bell Laboratories to develop a line-of-sight anti-aircraft missile system. The project created America’s first operational anti-aircraft missile system, the Nike Ajax. Here’s how the … Continued

Project Pluto: The craziest nuclear weapon in history

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On August 29, 1949, the Soviet Union conducted its first-ever atomic weapons test, ending America’s monopoly on the most destructive weapon system ever conceived by man. An arms race that had already begun immediately kicked into high gear, with both nations working frantically to develop new weapons and capabilities that were powerful enough to keep … Continued