1960-12-15-sc-p1-nike-ajax-sites-abandoned

December 15, 1960 Spokane Daily Chronicle Page 1:

Nike-Ajax Bases to Be Abandoned

Abandonment of Nike-Ajax sites near Spokane and Cheney early next year was disclosed yesterday in the wake of announcement from Washington, D. C., that Nike Hercules antiaircraft missiles would replace the Nike-Ajax at 68 sites throughout the United States.

The word came from Washington on the same day the construction project connected with the conversion of C battery near Medical Lake was completed.

Col. Max McCarthy, commander of the army’s first missile battalion, headquartered at Fairchild air force base, stressed, however, that there would be no deactivation of the two Ajax batteries until the Hercules C battery was fully operational. The battery is expected to be operational by the middle of February, he added. The "package," or crew, of C battery completed its training on the Hercules weapon this fall at Fort Bliss, Texas.

Colonel McCarthy said there would be no significant change in the number of troops under his command, because a Hercules battery required a larger complement of personnel than an Ajax. He estimated the decrease in men at about one-third.

More Powerful

The Hercules is the first air-to-air missile with an atomic capability, with three times the range and more than twice the altitude capability of the Ajax.

Official fact sheets give the Hercules a range of 75 miles and an altitude of ‘more than’ 150,000 feet. The Ajax is described as having a range of 25 miles and an altitude of 60,000 feet.

The speed of the Hercules is considerably more than that of sound. In tests at White Sands, N. M., missile range, it has intercepted and destroyed other missiles, although it was not designed to be a destroyer of long-range missiles.

The problem of disposing of the Ajax sites that will be abandoned is being studied by the air force.

One Converted

Delta battery, near Deep Creek, under Colonel MecCarthy’s command, was converted to the Hercules missile a year ago and is fully operational.

Other areas slated for conversion from Ajax to Hercules include Cleveland, Ohio; Detroit, Mich.; Seattle, Los Angeles, New York, Buffalo-Niagara Falls, N. Y.; Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, San Francisco, Travis air force base, California, and Washington.