GAM-87 Skybolt survives

How can we prevent the cancellation of the GAM-87 Skybolt, the only air-launched ballistic missile ever designed and Britain's original choice to base their nuclear deterrent on?
 
Past thread on this.

For what it's worth, Skybolt isn't the only ALBM ever designed. It may be the only missile designed from the get-go to be specifically an ALBM, I'm not sure, but the US air-launched a Minuteman ICBM from a cargo plane back in the 60s/70s as an experiment, and there were a lot of proposals for air-mobile MX Peacekeepers in the 70s and 80s. Of course, there were also proposals to put Peacekeeper on the moon, so that perhaps shouldn't be taken that seriously.
 
There were a couple of occasions that it wouldn't have been that hard to kill Hyman Rickover. It probably wouldn't do that much in the long term, but would very likely delay the SSBNs by a few years, likely enough to get Skybolt operational. Other than screwing around with Polaris you need to create a situation where the American's for one reason or another want to directly support the British nuclear capability at a time that, OTL, they really wanted it to go away completely.

It's probably not all that hard to get Skybolt operational, but then the question becomes why maintain it? One way or another SLBMs will come online at some point in the 60s, and even without nuclear propulsion they make a lot more sense than air launched ballistics. Skybolt is an interesting bit of technology, but is realistically a technological dead end, at least in terms of weaponry. I do wonder if getting it operational might lead to something like the Pegasus launch vehicle twenty or so years early though.
 
GAM-87 Skybolt was not beloved by RAF or USAF and SAC

the Air-launch ballistic missile could be launch by modified civilian aircraft, like a Vickers VC-10 (study by Ministry of defense)
while in time SAC lobby for a Mach 3 Bomber like XB-70, not for a subsonic C-130 pact full with Skybolt's
In same time the USAF start deployment of Minuteman & Titan II ICBM and US Navy there Polaris SLBM, making the Skybolt "obsolete".
finally it was US secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, misbelieve that ICBM and SLBM could replace Strategic bombers.

So he canceled the Skybolt program, forgetting that the British had put all there effort in the ALBM system and canceled allot of programs for it.
What let into a major crisis between the British and USA, an emergency meeting between parties from the US and UK was called, leading to the Nassau agreement.
in the end it the USA formal apology to British and gave them access to Polaris SLBM hardware.

but what if, the British government, had insisted that USA stay on agreement and delivery the Skybold ?
there some hint that Robert McNamara was willing to reactivate the Skybolt program for British use only.
 

Delta Force

Banned
McNamara was a major cost cutter, so perhaps he decides to maintain Skybolt in order to end the far more expensive strategic bomber programs. A hypersonic missile would give new capabilities to older aircraft and make it easier for them to evade Soviet air defenses. Some of the improved B-58 variants could also be built to carry the missile, as the capabilities of the Skybolt would make a Mach 3 bomber unneeded. The bomber and air defense race stops at Mach 2 (and what is required to shoot it down), unless the Soviets decide shooting down Mach 3+ spy aircraft is worth tens of billions of dollars in investment.
 
the use of B-58 as ALBM platform was tested in 1958/59
with WS-199C High Virgo, but the WS-199C program was sadly canceled.

aso was the B-58 fleet also on McNamara "To Kill List",
Because He decided that the B-58 was not going to be a viable weapon system.
first victim was order of 185 B-58B improved bombers, then the operational Fleet because it's high cost.
Then in argument on Mach 3 bomber at SAC, General Power answers angry to McNamara surprise:
"If we don't get a Mach 3 bomber, then restart the B-58 production line !"
 
not cancelling sky bolt also means the TL turns into a V-Bomber-wank with supersonic vulcan/concorde hybrids and Victors...
 
Top