British Nuclear Weapons - WE177A / WE177B / WE177C

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Vonbaron

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Tring to find out more about these weapons and technical data. Was there an Australian connection? Where were they tested? Maralinga Australia?
 
No Australian connection, the WE177 series was a British developed improvement of the US W59 developed after the failure of the joint US-UK Skybolt program to develop a air dropped version of the warhead used by the Minuteman missile. The British test detonations (24) were all conducted at Nevada.
 
WatcherZero said:
No Australian connection, the WE177 series was a British developed improvement of the US W59 developed after the failure of the joint US-UK Skybolt program to develop a air dropped version of the warhead used by the Minuteman missile. The British test detonations (24) were all conducted at Nevada.
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Ws Blue Danube and blue steel tested in Australia was violet Club and YellowSun tested in Australia? Thank you for the info
 
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UK nuclear tests

YearNo. of testsYieldTotalLocation
Proof of concept1952125 kt25 ktMonte Bello, AustraliaShip
Blue Danube195328-10 kt18 ktEmu Field, AustraliaTower
Red Beard/Blue Danube1956215-60 kt75 ktMaralinga, AustraliaTower
Red Beard/Blue Danube195642-15 kt30 ktMaralinga, AustraliaTower/Ground/Air drop 150m
Pixie/Indigo Hammer/Red Beard195731-27 kt34 ktMaralinga, AustraliaTower/Balloon 300m
Various UK designs1957-1958924-3000 kt7,869 ktChristmas Island, KiribatiAtmospheric
WE 177/UK improved Polaris/UK Trident1961-1991240-140 kt1,232 ktNevada, USUnderground
 
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WatcherZero said:
UK nuclear tests

YearNo. of testsYieldTotalLocation
Proof of concept
1952
125 kt25 ktMonte Bello, Australia
Blue Danube195328-10 kt18 ktMonte Bello, Australia
Red Beard/Blue Danube1956215-60 kt75 ktMaralinga, Australia
Red Beard/Blue Danube195642-15 kt30 ktMaralinga, Australia
Pixie/Indigo Hammer/Red Beard195731-27 kt34 ktMaralinga, Australia
Various designs1957-1958924-3000 kt7,869 ktChristmas Island, Kiribati
WE 177/Polaris/Trident1961-1991240-140 kt1,232 ktNevada, US
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Sincere thanks. May i use this and i will cite it. Is that Ok? Please provide me with the citation details. Again Sincere thanks
What was proof of concept?
 
Vonbaron said:
Sincere thanks. May i use this and i will cite it. Is that Ok? Please provide me with the citation details. Again Sincere thanks
What was proof of concept?
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Own research sorry, atomicarchive plus I flushed out the details. The first device wasnt intended as a deployable design but it would feed into the Blue Danube design.

United Kingdom's Nuclear Tests

United Kingdom's Nuclear Tests
www.atomicarchive.com www.atomicarchive.com
 
Vonbaron said:
Sincere thanks. May i use this and i will cite it. Is that Ok? Please provide me with the citation details. Again Sincere thanks
What was proof of concept?
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Pixie/Indigo Hamme ? Could you provide some details of these please?
 
Related to this topic is a great article by our own Chris Gibson (@CJGibson) in the April 2026 edition of Aeroplane Monthly:

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GTX said:
Related to this topic is a great article by our own Chris Gibson (@CJGibson) in the April 2026 edition
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Thanks GTX, possibly the most difficult piece I have tackled to date. There is lot of information on the subject, a lot of which contradicts what has been published in the past.

The difficulty was condensing it into the format of a Database feature.

Glad you enjoyed it.

Chris
 
Ok with the obvious caveat.

270 WE.177. How many were depth charge capable?
Successor to be variable yield. Low to medium.
300-400km range

Possibility of switching from W91 to W89 for TIRRM?

Curious rexamination suggests 24 years to restablish air tactical nuclear weapon.
But just 17 years for new ballistic missile weapon

Emergency effort might cut 5 years (really?) By reducing safety and standards.....Read a lot of that as administrative procedures.

I'd say take everything with salt here.

Except perhaps for the regret expressed in not pursuing the tactical successor to WE.177. As it would have kept a lot more capability in the UK for the future.
 
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zen said:
270 WE.177. How many were depth charge capable?
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We know this, thanks to Brian Burnell. 43 Royal Navy WE.177A held as NDBs. RAF weapons were all for strike, Nimrod in practice would have used USN B57 NDBs.

Discussion of TIRRM/TASM performance, warheads etc. more properly belongs in that thread, where the Richie and Walker paper was shared and discussed a year and a half ago.
zen said:
Emergency effort might cut 5 years (really?) By reducing safety and standards.....Read a lot of that as administrative procedures.
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Yes, the administrative procedures required to ensure safety and standards.
zen said:
I'd say take everything with salt here.

Except perhaps for the regret expressed in not pursuing the tactical successor to WE.177.
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Richie and Walker are writing from the perspective that nuclear disarmament is a good thing, and that the loss of capabilities related to nuclear weapons is also good because it makes getting them back impractical. Therefore not regret, but relief.
 
zen/YP #19/20. B.Burnell lists 107 WE177A by S/N(!), which I have as 44 /RAF, straight to Reserve (some maybe mtce-cycle backup), then consumed in WE177C pool; 63 ordered for RN, 20 diverted to RAF Bucc/Maritime Strike Wing, 43 to RN, which I have as 5 spares, 10 for SHAR FRS.1, 28 NDB. They could be issued as Bomb or NDB.

But: Hobbs,Carriers,P318 has CVL/CVS AW capacity as 12 ea.;
L.Freedman, F.I.Off.Hist: has in Falklands: Hermes: 40%, Invincible: 25% of RN AW (and 4 in 2 FFGs): so: 12 (Hermes full: 40%) so 30. Ho, hum. That's why CJG #17 has his RAF Bombs article as "most difficult piece I have tackled".
 
Indeed, it is a tangled web. I'm hoping this month's RAFHS seminar will shed light on a few matters and hopefully settle some of the arguments that have been going on for years, such as whether a live and ready to go Blue Steel was flown ina Victor/Vulcan.

Chris
 
Yellow Palace said:
We know this, thanks to Brian Burnell. 43 Royal Navy WE.177A held as NDBs. RAF weapons were all for strike, Nimrod in practice would have used USN B57 NDBs.
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This mates with the future number of 230 for WE.177 successor as TIRRM/TASM to be followed by NBD.
Implying either institutional Inertia or an underlying rational.
Yellow Palace said:
Discussion of TIRRM/TASM performance, warheads etc. more properly belongs in that thread, where the Richie and Walker paper was shared and discussed a year and a half ago.
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In context the two subjects be related. Successor gives us a degree of clarity on what it succeeds.
Yellow Palace said:
Yes, the administrative procedures required to ensure safety and standards.
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Among other things. One should beware the assumption it's all necessary.
Yellow Palace said:
Richie and Walker are writing from the perspective that nuclear disarmament is a good thing, and that the loss of capabilities related to nuclear weapons is also good because it makes getting them back impractical. Therefore not regret, but relief.
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The piece is indeed part of the anti-nuclear propaganda. But the 'regret' was that expressed by figures they interviewed.
Which lends greater believablity.
 
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CJGibson said:
such as whether a live and ready to go Blue Steel was flown ina Victor/Vulcan.

Chris
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Or even if a Blue Steel was ever flown with a live red snow sans HTP. I’ve been told unofficially by a chap who should know it’s no to all of the above at least in RAF service.
 
Zoo Tycoon said:
Or even if a Blue Steel was ever flown with a live red snow sans HTP. I’ve been told unofficially by a chap who should know it’s no to all of the above at least in RAF service.
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That's what I heard as well but I've yet to see it written on a bit of official paper or hear it from someone who had enough rings on their sleeves to give it credence.

Surveillance rounds also need clarification as they muddy the waters when discussing live rounds.

I would have gone to this seminar but had a previously arranged appointment with a Foxbat.

Chris Screenshot_20260420_070345_Gallery.jpg
 
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This blizzard of WE177 info feeds into Policy options suddenly real and now. It also offers a thought. Jinks 3/26,P.24 has Life Extension spend to take WE177C to 1998-2002. Ritchie/Walker, 4/24,P.16 has Ministers' 10/91 (Peace having broken out) intent to halve the stockpile (by when? it was so, by 3/94), then 4/95 intent to remove WE177C by 12/98 (so, 3/98).

Prof C.Andrew, Authorised Biographer of MI5, in The Mitrokhin Archive, A.Lane,99,P550 has: MJ.Smith, KGB spy '77 in Thorn-EMI team on WE177 “XN715 radar fuses(. USSR) succeeded in building a replica (With the) radio frequency on which the detonator was to operate (Sovs) would be able to create radio interference which could prevent (it) operating".

He was jailed in '93, so would have been detected by 10/91.
 

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