Produced by the Convair division of General Dynamics, this color film presents the Atlas Missile, the first operational intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) developed by the United States and the first member of the Atlas rocket family, as well as one of the first large liquid-fueled rockets. The first successful flight of a highly instrumented Atlas missile to full range occurred 28 November 1958, and the film probably dates from that time period. Atlas ICBMs were deployed operationally from 31 October 1959 to 12 April 1965
Opening title: ATLAS READY over an image of a red telephone buzzing (:11-:22). Vandenberg Air Force Base, headquarters for Strategic Air Command (SAC) located 9.2 miles northwest of Lompoc, California. Atlas missile moves from an underground silo on an elevator and into position, ready for launch. Air Force crew looks up at the Atlas. Inside a blockhouse control room, launch crew monitors the Atlas. Engineers with headsets watch monitors. Buttons illuminate confirming that the launch status is go (:23-2:37). A red telephone has a direct line to SAC in Omaha, Nebraska. Outside the blockhouse, antennas are arrayed in a series of long, pipe-like structures Shot of the missile with “Strategic Air Command” painted on its side (3:46). Men monitor if the missile is on its correct path. Air Police are responsible for security. Aerial shot of the Atlas missile. Atlas stands alone. Men radio in (2:38-4:25). A man enters bunker and the doors automatically close shut. A man on a headset radios in. Screens show the missile. Men work in the control room. Loop Test button turns from red to yellow. Atlas missile is getting ready to launch. Smoke or vaporizing propellant billows from the missile. A button is pressed, an antenna moves slowly (4:26-5:58). Missile ready button is green. A man gives orders on his headset. Flight pressurized button turns green. Men wear headsets, speak orders, and monitor screens. Radar antenna. The Atlas Missile is successfully launched (7:14). It heads downrange. A radar antenna follows it. High in the sky is the Atlas missile (5:59-8:13). End credits (8:14-8:22).
The SM-65 Atlas was t It was built for the U.S. Air Force by the Convair Division of General Dynamics at an assembly plant located in Kearny Mesa, San Diego. Atlas became operational in October 1959, but was soon made obsolete as an ICBM by new development, and was retired from this role by 1965. Atlas required long preparation times which made it unsuitable for a quick launch ICBM. However, this was not a requirement for planned space launches, and so Atlas-derived launch vehicles served a long history as space launchers. Even before its ICBM use ended in 1965, Atlas had placed four Project Mercury astronauts in orbit and was becoming the foundation for a family of successful space launch vehicles, most notably Atlas Agena and Atlas Centaur. Mergers led to the acquisition of the Atlas Centaur line by the United Launch Alliance. Today ULA supports the larger Atlas V, which combines the Centaur upper stage with a new booster. Until 2001, many retired Atlas ICBMs were refurbished and combined with upper stages to launch satellites.
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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD and 2k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com
