Brucelee's got nuthin on this!

The M-388 "Davy Crockett". The worlds first and only man-portable tactical nuclear recoilless rifle.

Yep, a 1 Kiloton, one-man, nuclear rocket launcher. Not a bomb or ICBM, but a look-you-in-the-eye range atomic weapon. Just look at it, almost looks like something out of a cartoon, like Wile E Coyote would get from ACME to use against the road runner.



Though never used, apparently 300 of these were made and kept in the arsenal till 1989. And though as awesome as these goofy looking doomsday launchers would be to still claim in our bag of tricks, I can hardly imagine a scenario where it would be practical to send one guy out with a nuclear rocket launcher over any other more practical means of delivery. Other than perhaps how cool of a movie scene it would be to see an over the shoulder shot of a guy standing on a hillside "bloomping" one of these bad boys off over an advancing enemy regiment a couple miles out, **silent pause** then large blinding flash and mushroom cloud. Fist pumping and foot stomping ensues!

I dont have a clip of that, but lets looks at the next best thing, 'Atomic Annie'. Our first nuclear Howitzer. Again, this weapon had such a far fetched reason to even exist over more conventional means of nuclear delivery, I can only imagine they went through the whole program just for one of the most kick-*** artillery movie clips ever, enjoy!

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...tomic+howitzer

 

this rules.

 

i saw this in Metal Gear Solid 3. thought it was made up, guess it wasn't.

 

+1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Wow, I didn't know the Davy Crockett was real

 

if ya like that, use this cool Google earth app to show the affect of different yield nuclear weapons on the city of your choice. 15kt is on there, does a good bit of damage to SF, but if you think thats bad just set it to 'Asteroid'

http://www.carloslabs.com/node/16

http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2...-maps-mas.html

 

I would imagine whoever has to fire that thing needs to be within diving range of his own nuclear fall out bunker.

 

the reason why this weapon was never used and eventually dismantled for scraps is because its range is 30 miles and consequently the fall out nuclear range is also 30 miles.
hmm... i can shoot this 30 miles, but the nuclear reach is 30 miles and hope to god there is no wind to carry it further... i'm not going to use it.

 

nice first post!

 

maybe you should pick it in a sti and let it drive 30 miles~then run away

 

Welcome to the Rock

 

is that a blitz nur spec on the end of that launcher?

 

probably, so Im sure its still loud as hell

 

Given a 20min head start, I could get out of range of the thermal damage of a 50mt bonb. Although the em pulse would probably fry the ecu , and shockwave would flatten everything within 30 miles.

 

ooh this was in metal gear solid 3 sorta...too bad you couldn't use it.