| North American AGM-28A Hound Dog |  |
The North American Aviation Corporation Air Ground Missile-28 Hound Dog was a supersonic, jet powered, air-launched cruise missile. Where it received the name Hound Dog has been the source of disagreement for decades. In the early years, the engineers gave credit to the popular Elvis Presley “You Ain’t nothing but a Hound Dog.” However, the B-52 crew members who flew with the Hound Dog always knew the name came from that famous hound dog “Snoopy.”
Development
The Hound Dog was originally envisioned as a temporary stand off weapon for the B-52, to be used until the AGM-48 Skybolt air launched ballistic missile could be deployed. Instead the Skybolt was canceled and the Hound Dog was deployed for 15 years until the missile was replaced by newer weapons including the AGM-69 SRAM and the AGM-86 ALCM.
The requirement called for a supersonic air-to-surface cruise missile with a weight of not more than 12,500 lb (fully fueled and armed) to be carried on the B-52. One Hound Dog was located under each wing of the B-52, between the fuselage and the inboard engines. The mission of the Hound Dog was to attack segments of the Soviet Union's air-defense system so that the launching B-52 could penetrate to its primary target.
The thermonuclear warhead carried by the Hound Dog was the W28 Class D[8]. The W28 warhead could be configured to yield an explosion between 70 Kilotons and 1.45 Megatons. Detonation of the Hound Dog's W28 warhead could be programmed to occur on impact or airburst at a pre-set altitude. An airburst would be used against a large area soft target. A hard surface impact would be used against a hard target such as a missile site or command control center
The Hound Dog could be launched from the B-52 mother ship at high altitude or low altitude (not below 5,000 feet). Three Hound Dog flight profiles were initially available for use by the bomber crew:
● High Altitude Attack: The Hound Dog flew at high altitude (up to 56,000 ft (17069 m) depending on the amount of fuel on board the missile) all the way to the target, then dived down to the warhead's pre-programmed detonation altitude.
● Low Altitude Attack: The Hound Dog flew at a low altitude below 5,000 ft pressure altitude to the target where the warhead then detonated. The missile had a reduced range of about 400 miles (644 km) when this flight profile was used. The missile did not perform terrain following in this flight profile. No major terrain obstructions could exist at the pre-set altitude along the missiles flight path.
● Dog Leg Attack: The Hound Dog flew a designated heading (in the high or low altitude profile) to a specific location. At that location the missile would turn and then travel to the target. The intent of this maneuver was to draw defensive fighter aircraft away from the missile's target.
Operational History
In July 1960, the Hound Dog reached initial operational capability with the first B-52 unit. The Hound Dog was used on airborne alert for the first time in January 1962. Full operational capability was achieved in August 1963 when 29 B-52 Bomber wings were operational with the Hound Dog.
In 1960, SAC developed procedures so that the B-52 could utilize the Hound Dog's J-52's engine for additional thrust while the missile was located on the bomber's pylon. The Hound Dog could be refueled from the B-52's wing fuel tanks.[9]
After thirteen years of service in the USAF, the last Hound Dog missile was removed from alert on 30 June 1975. The last Hound Dog was retired on 15 June, 1978 from the 42nd Bomb Wing at Loring Air Force Base, Maine where it was replaced by the AGM-69, the SRAM.
Specifications
Weight 10,147 lb
Length 42 ft 6 in
Height 9 ft 4 in
Wingspan 12 ft 2 in
Warhead 1,742 lb, W28 thermonuclear warhead.
Engine Pratt & Whitney J52-P-3 turbojet; 7,500 lb
Range 785 miles
Flight ceiling 56,200 ft
Flight altitude 200 ft to 56,200 ft
Speed Mach 2.1
Guidance system Inertial Navigation System with star-tracker correction.
Launch platform B-52 Stratofortress.
REFERENCES
Hound Dog, Historical Essay by Andreas Parsch, Encyclopedia Astronautica website, retrieved October 8, 2007,
The Navaho Project - A Look Back, North American Aviation Retirees Bulletin, Summer 2007.
Complete List of All U.S. Nuclear Weapons, Nuclear Weapon Archive Website, retrieved October 13, 2007,
B-52 Stratofortress: Boeing's Cold War Warrior, Dorr, R. & Peacock, L., Osprey Aviation: Great Britain. ISBN 1-84176-097-8
Angle of Attack: Harrison Storms and the Race to the Moon, Mike Gray, Penguin, 1994, ISBN 978-0140232806
North American AGM-28B Hound DogAviation Enthusiast Corner Website,
The USAF and the Cruise Missile Opportunity or Threat, Kenneth P. Werrell, Technology and the Air Force A Retrospective Assessment, Air Force History and Museums Program, 1997
Airpower Theory and Practice, Edited by John Gooch, Frank Cass Publishing, 1995, ISBN-0-7146-4186-3.
Association of the Air Force Missileers: "Victors in the Cold War, Turner Publishing Company, 1998, ISBN 1563114550
This aircraft is on loan to the Chanute Air Museum from the National Museum of the United States Air Force. |
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