Wild Weasel

You never know what you will find on the back roads. I was traveling through farm country in Wyoming when something caught my eye – a mobile SAM (surface to air missile) launcher! Next to it was a radar and I found a sign saying it was a U.S. Air Force installation. But something about the missile launcher didn’t look right. I got a closer look and realized it was not real. It was a mock-up of a Russian SA-6 missile launcher. Then I realized what I was looking at – a training setup for “Wild Weasel” pilots. “Wild Weasel” is the name for aircraft that are designed to destroy enemy anti-aircraft missiles and guns. Anyway it was a geeky thrill for me, and another reason why I always try to take the back roads instead of the interstates on my journeys.

The mock-up missile launcher.

The radar is on the left, the missile launcher on the right, and it looks like a farmer’s tractor is parked in the middle.

Minuteman III

I read that the U.S. Air Force has a number of nuclear missile silos scattered around the farm country north of where I am now living.  I did a little research and headed out this morning to see if I could find one.

Doesn’t look like much from the side of the road.  A fenced in area with phone and power lines running into it.  But under the ground there should be a Minuteman III nuclear missile.

The front gate.

The sign on the front gate and all other sides of the fence.

Please note: all shots were done with a zoom lens from a public road.  Similar, and more detailed, photos and maps of missile sites can be found in many places on the internet.