1955 ... a popular model!

... Hydrogen Bomb 101- the round thingy is a fission type atomic bomb which goes Bang and provides crazy amounts of heat and radiation to make the Hydrogen goop [blue and tan stuff] start the process of fusion which then causes a VAROOOOOM equal to about 4 million tons of TNT or 200 Hiroshima sized atom-bombs. Is that clear? There will be a quiz later.

Your B-52 Stratofortress can carry, oh - say, 4 to 5 of these.

all images- Right click- open in New Window or Tab = super colossal size!

1953 ... more dreams of VTOL!

... efforts that started in WWII to provide supply convoys with their own air-cover continued into the Cold War. The Navy (desperate to remain relevant in a time when it was thought that any large war would be resolved by the Air Force's strategic bombers and nuclear payloads in a few days) continued to consider any crazy plan to get jets on any ship! Despite the fact that the fighter pictured has USAF markings I suspect that the 'boys in blue' would be making rude noises from the back of the briefing hall.  

 

1954 ... nuclear soap opera!

all images- Right click- open in New Window or Tab = super colossal size!

... another view inside the B-52!

1960 ... big and smokey B-52

all images- Right click- open in New Window or Tab = super colossal size!

1962 ... "right this way Senator!"

... warm and fuzzy cut-a-way of the congressional bunker underneath the Greenbriar Hotel.

LINK

1960 ... so that's what that is!

Leonid Brezhnev - leader USSR 1964-1982

LINK

... "heavy man- very heavy!"

LINK

all images- Right click- open in New Window or Tab = super colossal size!

... Mutual Assured Deterrence! (MAD)

... Airpower- The New Doctrine!

.. when it's narrated by Walter Cronkite- you know it's serious! An interesting who's got what and how much and what about those scary missiles that are being developed. If you need me I'll be hiding under my bed!

 

... B-52 Stratofortress

... nose profiles of the B-52 heavy Strategic bomber. The top illustration is probably around the time of it's introduction into service in 1955. The lower illustration should be around 1960 (you can just see the nose of a 'Houndog' standoff missile hung from the wing on the right). The aluminum skin is so thin, that yes indeed, it does wrinkle. 

Guess somewhere along the way they decided to make sure everybody knew this monster belonged to the USAF and not... Luxembourg?

all images- Right click- open in New Window or Tab = super colossal size!

... you and your Stratofortress!

... basic layout of the six crew-members (5 since the rear gunner was eliminated in 1991) for a B-52 'BUFF' [ Big Ugly Fat Fellow]

 

1952 ... Atomic Minutemen!

... Gramps relates his experience as a WW2 Air Raid Warden and how it's important to apply the same common sense to protection against attack with atomic weapons. Everybody feels safer and vows to volunteer for Civil Defense work.

 

1951 ... death dust from above!

... speculation about all sorts of atomic terrors made for great reading!
... still does!

(remainder of article here)

all images- Right click- open in New Window or Tab = super colossal size!

1959 ... tell them 'Ike' sent you!

... one of two major entrances (the back-door?) to the Greenbriar Bunker for the sheltering of Congressmen and Senators in the event of nuclear war. Begun in 1959 and ready for occupancy in 1962 the site is now maintained as a Cold War tourist destination. 

1951 ... meanwhile: in deepest, darkest Russia!

... in a world before spy satellites or even U-2 spy planes there's lot's of room for getting the heebie-jeebies about what the other fellow might be up to! Here's some entertaining, and magazine selling, speculation about the Soviet's following up on WWII German research.

( remainder of article here)

all images- Right click- open in New Window or Tab = super colossal size!

1953 ... ma bell says no talking!

... rather gritty style for a high-tech company- but maybe they were going for a Micky Spillane does the Cold War feel. If it ran on electricity and had anything to do with blowing up the world; Western Electric was deep into it! The mind boggles at the depth and breadth of "The Military Industrial Complex" at the height of the Cold War. For better or worse, it would have been a pathetic party if they hadn't shown up!

... here's a little documentary from 1953 from those all-American mad scientists at Western Electric/ Bell Laboratories.

 

1958 ... F 106-D (X)

... more keeno views of the "Sky Scorcher". This was the super-duper upgrade version of the Delta Dart. Convair was monopolizing a big chunk of the Air Force's orders and they weren't about to leave any stone un-turned. "We'll turn it into a spaceship if that's what they'll buy!"

This was the period where the biggest threat came from Soviet manned bombers. So 'climb to altitude' and fastest speed for intercepting the enemy as soon and as far out as possible was number one on the USAF menu.

...sorry about the low quality of the second image. I keep telling Boris and Natasha that if they want to keep up with the other spies they need to get a better camera!