| SSM-A-14/M8/PGM-11 Redstone[1] | |
|---|---|
 Redstone No. CC-56, Cape Canaveral, Florida, 17 September 1958 | |
| Type | |
| Place of origin | United States |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1958–1964, 1966-7 |
| Used by | United States, Australia |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Army Ballistic Missile Agency |
| Designed | 1950–1952 |
| Manufacturer | Chrysler Corporation |
| Produced | 1952–1961 |
| No. built |
|
| Variants | Block I, Block II |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 61,207 pounds (27,763 kg) at ignition |
| Length | 69.3 feet (21.1 m) |
| Diameter | 5.83 feet (1.8 m) |
| Blast yield | W39 warhead, 3.75 megatons of TNT (15.7 PJ) |
| Engine | Rocketdyne North American Aviation 75–110 A-7 78,000 pounds-force (350 kN) thrust at sea level for 121 seconds |
| Payload capacity | 6,305 pounds (2,860 kg) |
| Propellant |
|
| Fuel capacity |
|
Operational range | 57.5 to 201 miles 92.5 to 323.5 kilometres |
| Flight altitude | 28.4 to 58.7 miles 45.7 to 94.5 kilometres |
| Boost time | 97 seconds to 155 seconds |
| Maximum speed | Mach 5 – Mach 6 (6,100–7,400 km/h; 3,800–4,600 mph; 1.7–2.0 km/s) maximum at re-entry interface |
Guidance system | Ford Instrument Company ST-80 inertial guidance |
Steering system | Carbon jet vanes, air rudders, spatial air jet nozzles, air vanes |
| Accuracy | 300 metres (980 ft) CEP |
Launch platform | guided missile platform launcher M74[citation needed] |
The PGM-11 Redstone was the first large American ballistic missile. A short-range ballistic missile (SRBM), it was in active service with the United States Army in West Germany from June 1958 to June 1964 as part of NATO's Cold War defense of Western Europe. It was the first US missile to carry a live nuclear warhead, in the 1958 Pacific Ocean weapons test Hardtack Teak.[2]
The Redstone was a direct descendant of the German V-2 rocket, developed primarily by a team of German rocket engineers brought to the United States after World War II. The design used an upgraded engine from Rocketdyne that allowed the missile to carry the 6,900 lb (3,100 kg) W39 and its reentry vehicle to a range of about 175 miles (282 km). Redstone's prime contractor was the Chrysler Corporation.[3]
The Redstone spawned the Redstone rocket family which holds a number of firsts in the US space program, notably launching the first US astronaut. It was retired by the Army in 1964 and replaced by the solid-fueled MGM-31 Pershing. Surplus missiles were widely used for test missions and space launches, including the first US man in space, and in 1967 the launch of Australia's first satellite.
- ^ "Redstone".
- ^ Redstone Rocket, Hardtack-Teak Test, August 1958 (in French). August 1958. Archived from the original on 7 December 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2015 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Redgap, Curtis The Chrysler Corporation Missile Division and the Redstone missiles, 2008 Orlando, Florida. Retrieved Oct 8 2010". Archived from the original on 30 March 2008. Retrieved 6 March 2008.