Alaska's Cold War Nuclear Shield by Bob Raichle
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An Alaska Nike Veteran shares an interesting history of Alaska's Nike Hercules Missile System.
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Nike Site Summit
Nike Site Summit is located on the eastern edge of Fort Richardson adjacent to Chugach State Park and the Arctic Valley Ski Area (Map). Commissioned in 1959, it is one of three Nike Missile sites that protected Anchorage, Elmendorf AFB, and Fort Richardson during the Cold War, and one of 145 Nike Hercules missile sites constructed across the nation from 1957 to 1960 (Photos).
The Nike Hercules missile, pictured at right, was the U.S. military's first nuclear capable anti-aircraft missile. Nike Site Summit operated to defend against a potential attack by nuclear armed Soviet bombers. From 1960 to 1963 Nike Site Summit held annual live fire exercises, launching unarmed practice missiles to test the readiness of Nike missile crews. Many Anchorage residents remember stopping work and taking breaks from school to watch the annual firings. They were exciting events! The Nike Hercules missile is an incredibly fast missile, attaining a top speed of nearly 3,000 mph during a launch!
Nike Site Summit and the site in Key West, Florida were decommissioned in 1979, the last two sites in the nation to close. After maintaining Nike Site Summit into the early 1980s the U.S. Army abandoned the site. Following the end of the Cold War in 1989 interest in preserving the site grew. In 1996, the site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as an outstanding example of a Cold War era Nike Hercules missile site. Efforts to preserve the site continued, with limited success, throughout the late 1990s.
In 2009, the U.S. Army, the National Park Service, State of Alaska, and local preservation groups reached an agreement that preserves most of Nike Site Summit and will allow guided tours. Friends of Nike Site Summit began restoration efforts in June 2010.
For more information about Site Summit and the Nike Hercules Missile Program check out the PowerPoint below and these interesting links.
The Nike Hercules missile, pictured at right, was the U.S. military's first nuclear capable anti-aircraft missile. Nike Site Summit operated to defend against a potential attack by nuclear armed Soviet bombers. From 1960 to 1963 Nike Site Summit held annual live fire exercises, launching unarmed practice missiles to test the readiness of Nike missile crews. Many Anchorage residents remember stopping work and taking breaks from school to watch the annual firings. They were exciting events! The Nike Hercules missile is an incredibly fast missile, attaining a top speed of nearly 3,000 mph during a launch!
Nike Site Summit and the site in Key West, Florida were decommissioned in 1979, the last two sites in the nation to close. After maintaining Nike Site Summit into the early 1980s the U.S. Army abandoned the site. Following the end of the Cold War in 1989 interest in preserving the site grew. In 1996, the site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as an outstanding example of a Cold War era Nike Hercules missile site. Efforts to preserve the site continued, with limited success, throughout the late 1990s.
In 2009, the U.S. Army, the National Park Service, State of Alaska, and local preservation groups reached an agreement that preserves most of Nike Site Summit and will allow guided tours. Friends of Nike Site Summit began restoration efforts in June 2010.
For more information about Site Summit and the Nike Hercules Missile Program check out the PowerPoint below and these interesting links.