Blue Steel (missile)
The Avro Blue Steel was a British air-launched, rocket-propelled nuclear armed standoff missile, built to arm the V bomber force. It allowed the bomber to launch the missile against its target while still outside the range of surface-to-air missiles (SAMs). The missile proceeded to the target at speeds up to Mach 3, and would trigger within 100 m of the pre-defined target point.
| Blue Steel | |
|---|---|
Blue Steel missile | |
| Type | Nuclear stand-off air-launched cruise missile |
| Place of origin | United Kingdom |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1963-1970 |
| Used by | Royal Air Force |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | Avro |
| No. built | 53 operational live rounds |
| Variants | One/mod for low-level delivery |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 17,000 lb (7,700 kg) |
| Length | 34 ft 11 in (10.64 m) |
| Diameter | 1.22 m (48 in) minimum |
| Wingspan | 12 ft 11 in (3.94 m) |
| Warhead | Red Snow thermonuclear weapon |
| Blast yield | 1.1 megaton |
| Engine | Armstrong Siddeley Stentor 20,000 lbf (88.9 kN) |
| Propellant | hydrogen peroxide with kerosene |
Operational range | 926 km (575 mi) |
| Flight ceiling | 21,500 m (70,500 ft) |
| Maximum speed | Mach 3+ |
Guidance system | Inertial navigation system |
Steering system | Movable flight control surfaces |
Launch platform | Aircraft |
Blue Steel entered service in 1963, by which point improved SAMs with longer range had greatly eroded the advantages of the design. A longer-range version, Blue Steel II, was considered, but cancelled in favour of the much longer-range GAM-87 Skybolt system from the US. When development of that system was cancelled in 1962, the V-bomber fleet was considered highly vulnerable. Blue Steel remained the primary British nuclear deterrent weapon until the Royal Navy started operating Polaris ballistic missiles from Resolution-class submarines.