Martin TM-61 Matador - Valle, AZ
Posted by: 
bluesnote
N 35° 39.195 W 112° 08.397
12S E 396809 N 3946089
This aircraft was the first surface to surface cruise missile built by the United States. There is one here on public display as you drive to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.
Waymark Code: WMR303
Location: Arizona, United States
Date Posted: 05/04/2016
Views: 6
Taken from Wikipedia, "The Martin MGM-1 Matador was the first operational surface-to-surface cruise missile built by the United States. It was similar in concept to the German V-1, but the Matador included a radio command that allowed in-flight course corrections. This allowed accuracy to be maintained over greatly extended ranges of just under 1000 km. To allow these ranges, the Matador was powered by a small turbojet engine in place of the V-1's much less efficient pulsejet.
Matador was armed with the W5 nuclear warhead, essentially an improved version of the Fat Man design that was lighter and had a smaller cross section. A single US Air Force group, 1st Pilotless Bomber Squadron, was armed with the weapon, keeping them on alert with a six-minute launch time. It could be easily retargeted, unlike weapons using inertial guidance systems. Accuracy at maximum range was about 1 mile (1.6 km), which allowed it to be used against any large target like troop concentrations or armored spearheads.
First flown in 1949, Matador entered service in 1952 and left service in 1957. Matador carried several designations during its lifetime, originally known under the War Department's system as SSM-A-1. By the time it was introduced to service the Air Force had been created, and they referred to them as bombers and assigned it the B-61 designation. It was later re-designated TM-61, for "tactical missile", and finally MGM-1 when the US Department of Defense introduced the tri-service aircraft designation system in 1962."
Type of Aircraft: (make/model): Martin TM-61 Matador
Construction:: original aircraft
Location (park, airport, museum, etc.): Park
inside / outside: outside
Other Information::
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MGM-1_Matador
Access restrictions:
24/7
Tail Number: (S/N): Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
Photo of aircraft (required - will be interesting to see if the aircraft is ever repainted or progress if being restored)
Photo of serial number (required unless there is not one or it is a replica)
Photo(s) of any artwork on the aircraft (optional but interesting)
Tell why you are visiting this waymark along with any other interesting facts or personal experiences about the aircraft not already mentioned.