Missile away, missile away! - A Cold War US Peacekeeper nuclear missile launch officer (275)

Cold War Conversations Podcast

Ian Sanders

History, Society & Culture, Documentary

4.8 • 758 Ratings

🗓️ 4 February 2023

⏱️ 84 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Tim Lyon was an officer assigned to the 400th Strategic Missile Squadron located in Cheyenne Wyoming. The Squadron was maintained 50 Peacekeeper ICBM missiles based in underground silos in farmers’ fields in remote areas of Wyoming. Tim was one of two launch officers who were responsible for 10 of these missiles. He and his colleague would descend forty to sixty feet below ground to a concrete capsule that housed the Launch Control Centre. There he would spend 24-hour alerts ready to launch 100 nuclear warheads — each with twenty times the explosive force of the Hiroshima bomb at speeds of 15,000 mph. We hear in detail about his training, the testing procedures, security, and how he handled such a huge responsibility. Tim also describes launching one of these missiles from a test site in the US. Episodes mentioned: Commanding a Royal Navy Polaris Nuclear Missile Submarine https://coldwarconversations.com/episode168/ Cold War history is disappearing; however, a simple monthly donation will keep this podcast on the air. You’ll become part of our community and get a sought after CWC coaster as a thank you and you’ll bask in the warm glow of knowing you are helping to preserve Cold War history. Just go to https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/ If a monthly contribution is not your cup of tea, We also welcome one-off donations via the same link. Episode notes here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode275/ Support the project! https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/ Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/ColdWarPod Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/coldwarpod/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/coldwarconversations/ Youtube https://youtube.com/@ColdWarConversations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Cold War Conversations, the home of real stories of the Cold War.
0:05.9	Timothy Shalame is Bob Dylan and a complete unknown.
0:09.4	If anyone who's going to hold your attention on the state, you have to kind of be a freak.
0:13.9	Critics agree it's outstanding on every level. Five stars.
0:19.1	Shalemay is a revelation.
0:20.8	What do you want to be?
0:21.9	Whatever it is, they don't want me to be.
0:23.8	Now nominated for the Golden Globes for Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Supporting Actor, Edward Norton.
0:29.4	A complete unknown.
0:30.6	Ladies and gentlemen, Bob Bill!
0:32.4	In cinemas, January 17, rated 15.
0:36.0	And then you see your display panels with these lights, you know, missile away, missile away, missile away, and I got ten of those things.
0:41.3	For the first time for me, that was kind of like the eye-opener.
0:45.1	It's like, okay, this is real.
0:49.8	This is Cold War Conversations.
0:53.1	If you're new here, you've come to the right place to listen to first-hand Cold War history accounts.
0:59.6	Do make sure you follow us in your podcast app or join our emailing list to keep up with the latest episode.
1:08.5	Tim Lyon was an officer assigned to the 400 Strategic Missiles Squadron located in Cheyenne, Wyoming.
1:15.6	The squadron was responsible for 50 peacekeeper intercontinental ballistic missiles based in underground silos in farmers' fields in remote areas of Wyoming. Tim was one of two launch officers who were responsible for 10 of these missiles.
1:32.3	He and his colleague would descend 40 to 60 feet below ground to a concrete capsule which housed the launch control center.
1:40.3	There he would spend 24-hour alerts ready to launch 100 nuclear warheads, each with 20 times
1:49.1	the explosive force of the Hiroshima bomb, at speeds of up to 15,000 miles per hour. We hear in detail about
	...

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