The history of American rocket mail projects, as far as we know, began in the first half of the thirties. Having learned about the successful tests of special transport missiles in Austria, the enterprising Americans began to create their own systems of this kind. Over the next several decades, the enthusiasts collected and launched rockets, but did not have official support. In the late fifties, government agencies themselves showed interest in rocket mail, and organized a rocket flight with correspondence. The carrier of such a load was the SSM-N-8 Regulus cruise missile.
For a long time, the United States Post Office has shown little interest in the numerous special transport missile projects. The existing infrastructure coped with the assigned tasks, and did not need a radical restructuring and fundamentally new means. In addition, the enthusiast's mail rockets were not very high performance and did not meet the requirements of the post office. As a result, the launches were carried out privately, for the entertainment of the public and for the delight of philatelists, who could receive original collection materials.
Rocket SSM-N-9 Regulus in one of the American museums
However, at the end of the fifties, such "entertainment events" interested the leadership of the American Post Office Department, as a result of which a more than original and bold idea emerged. The postal administration did not deal with private individuals, but turned to the command of the naval forces for help. This collaboration has led to the most interesting results.
In early 1959, the Post Office and the Navy entered into an agreement to conduct a demonstration launch of a missile with a special payload. According to this document, in the near future the serial cruise missile SSM-N-8 "Regul" was supposed to be the carrier of mail. It was proposed to launch it from one of the combat submarines in the direction of the land range. There, the cargo was to be removed from the rocket and handed over to "land" mail for further distribution. The necessary work and preparation for the future launch took several months. The joint work of the fleet and the post office was not disclosed, which later led to numerous complaints.
Mail submarine
In preparation for the experimental launch, the "sender" of the mail rocket was selected. Diesel-electric submarine USS Barbero (SSG-317) was assigned as the carrier of Regula with the mail. This ship was laid down in March 1943 and entered service at the end of April 1944. Initially, it was armed only with torpedoes. The submarine took part in the Second World War, solving combat missions in the Pacific theater of operations.
Container for transportation of mail on "Regula"
After the war, in the late forties, the submarine was used as an experimental vessel. With its help, scientists and specialists of the fleet studied the promising submarines and the possibility of using this or that new equipment. This work continued until 1950, when operation of the Barbero was suspended. Soon the ship was sent for repair and modernization. In accordance with the new plans of the command, he was supposed to become a carrier of promising SSM-N-8 cruise missiles.
During the upgrade, a hangar for two cruise missiles and a launcher appeared on the deck of the boat, behind the wheelhouse enclosure. A lot of new equipment was placed inside and outside the rugged case. The complex of communications and navigation equipment was updated, and in addition, the submarine received control devices for firing missiles. As a result of this modernization, the submarine USS Barbero (SSG-317) retained its basic characteristics, but received completely new combat capabilities.
The submarine had a length of 95 m and a displacement of 2460 tons. The basis of the power plant was four General Motors Model 16-278A diesel engines connected to electric generators. Energy was stored in two batteries with 126 cells each. Four electric motors were responsible for the movement, with the help of gearboxes connected to a pair of propellers. Maximum speed (on the surface) exceeded 20 knots. The cruising range is up to 11 thousand nautical miles. The maximum diving depth is 120 m. The boat was operated by 80 sailors, including 10 officers. After modernization "Barbero" retained six bow torpedo tubes of 533 mm caliber with 14 torpedoes.
Welcome letter envelope from the side of the rocket
Due to the technological imperfection of the carrier and its rocket armament, the use of Regulus missiles was associated with certain difficulties. Before launching, the submarine had to surface. Then the crew had to open the hangar and take the rocket to the launcher. These procedures took a lot of time, which reduced the real potential of the complex.
Mail carrier
The SSM-N-8 Regulus cruise missile, developed by the Chance Vought Aircraft Company, entered service in the mid-fifties. It was created for use on surface ships and submarines; the mission of the missile was the delivery of a special warhead of high power to enemy ground targets. The rocket had a specific technical appearance and did not differ in ease of operation or reliability. At the same time, such weapons gave the US Navy new combat capabilities.
The Regul rocket was a normal aerodynamic projectile aircraft equipped with a turbojet engine. The main element of the airframe was a cigar-shaped fuselage built on the basis of a frame. In the nose of the rocket there was a frontal air intake, behind which was a long duct pipe. The body of the warhead was used as the central body of the intake. In the central part of the rocket there were fuel tanks surrounding the air duct, as well as the autopilot and part of the control systems. An Allison J33-A-14 turbojet engine with a thrust of 2100 kgf was installed in the tail. At the start, it was proposed to use a pair of solid-fuel engines with a thrust of 15 thousand kgf each.
Rocket Flying Letter
The product received a swept wing of the middle position. In the transport position, it folded, which reduced the diameter of the rocket by more than half. The tail unit consisted of only one keel mounted on the fuselage from above. For transportation, it folded. In-flight control was carried out using elevons on the wing and a rotary keel.
The Regulus rocket had a length of 9.8 m with a maximum fuselage diameter of less than 1.5 m. The wingspan in the flight position was 6.4 m, in the transport position - 3 m. A special warhead weighing up to 3 thousand pounds (1360 kg). The total mass of the product in the launch position is 6, 2 tons. The flight to the target was carried out at subsonic speed. The flight range, in accordance with the terms of reference, was 500 nautical miles (926 km).
The launch was carried out with a rail, the length of which was less than the length of the rocket. Due to powerful starting engines and a given elevation angle, the rocket could reach the calculated trajectory. Further, the flight was carried out using a guidance system with two separate control stations installed on the carrier submarine and another ship. Later, the controls were modernized, thanks to which the carrier submarine was able to independently control the flying missile.
Launch of a mail rocket from the USS Barbero
Despite the imperfection, the existing control system provided acceptable firing accuracy. The circular probable deviation was only 0.5% of the flight range. This means that when launched at the maximum range, the missile deviated from the target by only 4.6 km.
Final preparations
In the early months of 1959, the United States Postal Service and the United States Navy undertook preparations for a future experimental postal version of the Regulus rocket. The most difficult, for obvious reasons, was the organization of the launch itself and the preparation of the rocket. However, such work did not take long.
In a future operation, it was proposed to use a modified version of the SSM-N-8 prototype missile. A few years earlier, a reusable prototype rocket was created to reduce the cost of the test program. She had a landing gear and a remote control for landing. Such a product could make several flights, which simplified testing and debugging.
Rocket landing at Mayport base
The mail rocket based on the experimental Regulus lost its warhead or its weight simulator, as well as some other equipment. In the bow, next to the engine air duct, a volume was found to accommodate the payload. It was proposed to put the letters in a couple of special containers. The container was a rectangular metal box with a beveled top, due to which it could be installed in a circular fuselage. The box held 1,500 standard letter envelopes. The total payload of the rocket included 3 thousand letters.
The serial SSM-N-9 missiles for the Navy were dark blue. The mail carrier was painted red. The mail containers were painted blue and the top was red. On a blue background, there were the white letters `` U. S. Mail . Probably, such marking was provided in case of an accident and loss of correspondence.
The submarine USS Barbero (SSG-317) did not need any modifications to participate in the future "operation". At the same time, her crew was instructed accordingly. In addition, the necessary documents were handed over to him.
In early June 1959, the Post Office Department prepared a payload for a new mail rocket. The latter carried almost 3,000 letters of welcome to President Dwight Eisenhower, Vice President Richard Nixon, ministers, governors, congressmen, officials, the military, etc. Some of the letters were intended for American addressees, some for foreign ones.
Removing containers from the rocket. In the center is the postmaster general of the United States A. I. Summerfield
For the launch, special envelopes were prepared with a drawing of a flying rocket and the signature "The first official rocket mail". The envelopes bore one or two 4-cent stamps. The stamps were canceled with a special date stamp. The submarine USS Barbero was indicated on the postmark as the dispatch department. It should be noted that the cancellation took place on the shore long before the time indicated on the postmark.
Unfortunately for philatelists, the organizers of the experiment did not inform the public about the future launch. As a result, civilians were unable to send their letters and postcards to transport the mail rocket, as was the case with previous experiments.
Start key
On the morning of June 8, 1959, the Barbero was 100 miles off the coast of Florida. The day before, a special Regulus rocket with a special payload was loaded into its hangar. In a few hours, the ship reached the launch point, after which it began preparations for the launch. In accordance with the launch plan, the missile was to be aimed at the Mayport naval station, where it was supposed to land.
At about noon local time, the crew of the carrier submarine gave the command to start. The rocket successfully exited the rail and headed for the targeted area.22 minutes after the launch, the rocket reached the Mayport base, where it was taken on remote control and safely landed on the ground. Mail containers were immediately removed from the rocket, which were to be handed over to the nearest post office in Jacksonville. From there, the correspondence went to the addressees through the existing channels.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower (left) receives a letter from Postman Noble Upperman. In the center - A. I. Summerfield
On the occasion of the arrival of the first rocket with the mail, a real celebration was organized at Mayport base. Meeting Regul, representatives of the postal department and the naval forces made speeches. For example, US Postmaster General Arthur I. Summerfield said that the peaceful use of a military missile in the interests of the post office is of great practical interest. In addition, he noted that for the first time in the world a mail rocket was launched by order and with the direct participation of the state postal department. Finally, he expressed the hope that a full-scale mail service using rockets will be organized on the planet in the near future.
After launch …
With the help of a modified SSM-N-8 rocket, several thousand welcome letters were delivered to land from the Atlantic Ocean, intended for officials of several countries. In the shortest possible time, this correspondence reached the addressees. In addition, the launch was reported to the public.
The messages were received with enthusiasm by the philatelic community, although not without criticism. The Post Office received several letters in which it was accused of hiding an interesting experiment from the public. Many of those who learned about the launch would like to send their letters and postcards with a rocket, but did not get this opportunity.
The letters from the rocket immediately became of interest to collectors. Soon, some of the addressees put their letters up for sale. Subsequently, shipments from the Regulus rocket have repeatedly appeared at auctions and other trading platforms. Some of the unique envelopes ended up in museums in the USA and other countries, others are kept in private collections.
Unfortunately, the predictions of A. I. Summerfield did not come true. The launch of the SSM-N-8 rocket in June 1959 was the first and last of its kind. American departments no longer tried to arrange such mailing. Naturally, expectations about the organization of international missile lines for mail forwarding did not come true either. In fact, the launch of Regula with a special load repeated the fate of other attempts to create rocket mail.
The experimental launch of a combat cruise missile with mail on board was of great interest to the public and experts. However, he turned out to be the first and the last. The specifics of postal messages and rocketry of that time did not allow such ideas to be successfully implemented in practice, as a result of which they were abandoned. However, the only launch of SSM-N-8 with letters had positive consequences. The philatelic community received a lot of unique collection materials, and the post office and the military were able to establish in practice the prospects for unusual ideas.
