In the mid-fifties, the US Air Force began to develop new options for strategic weapons. In 1957, the Pentagon launched a program with the code designation WS-199, the purpose of which was to study the capabilities and create promising models of aircraft missile weapons. Within the framework of the general program, several missile systems were simultaneously developed at once. One of them was the Lockheed WS-199C High Virgo system.
The main prerequisite for the emergence of the WS-199 program was the progress in the field of air defense systems. Bombers with free-fall bombs could be shot down on the way to the targets, and therefore the aviation needed missile weapons, allowing them not to approach dangerous zones. After analyzing, Pentagon experts have established that the best combination of flight characteristics and warhead mass should have air-launched ballistic missiles.
Rocket WS-199C on carrier suspension
At the beginning of 1957, a new program was launched under the nondescript name WS-199 (Weapon System 199). Several leading companies in the aviation industry were involved in its implementation, which should have worked out and implemented new ideas and solutions in metal. Lockheed and Convair joined the program along with other companies. The latter by this time managed to become part of General Dynamics.
The development of the rocket was taken over by Lockheed. Her project was designated as WS-199C. In addition, the product was given a "star" name - High Virgo ("Virgo at its zenith"). The task of the Convair company was to finalize the carrier aircraft, which was chosen as the newest supersonic bomber B-58 Hustler. As far as we know, the upgraded aircraft did not have its own designation.
Rocket diagram
The WS-199C project was based on new and unexplored ideas, but it was planned to implement them using finished products. In order to accelerate the design and simplify subsequent production as part of a promising rocket, it was proposed to use components and assemblies from the Lockheed Q-5 Kingfisher target aircraft, as well as X-17, MGM-29 Sergeant and UGM-27 Polaris ballistic missiles. First of all, the power plant and control systems were borrowed from the existing weapon.
From an architectural point of view, the new High Virgo rocket was a single-stage product with a high-power solid-propellant engine. A very simple design of the body was proposed, assembled from a frame and aluminum skin. A conical head fairing was used, behind which the main control devices were placed inside the cylindrical compartment. The central and tail parts of the hull, which were distinguished by an increased diameter, were given under the engine. In the tail, X-shaped aerodynamic rudders were placed.
Product on the assembly stack
Being a ballistic missile, the WS-199C product could be equipped with a relatively simple guidance system borrowed from the AGM-28 Hound Dog project. The instrument compartment housed an autopilot and an inertial navigation system. They were supposed to track the position of the rocket in space and develop commands for the tail steering machines. In the control automation, there were means for receiving data from the carrier aircraft. It was planned to use telemetric data transmission equipment during the flight. During the tests, simplified control systems were used, capable only of performing a pre-drawn flight program.
The hull dimensions made it possible to equip the High Virgo rocket with a monoblock warhead with a conventional or nuclear charge. At the same time, the use of real combat equipment was not initially planned. Until the very end of the work, the rockets were equipped only with its weight simulator. What existing and future nuclear warheads could be used on the WS-199C is unknown.
B-58 bomber with a special pylon for the High Virgo missile
Most of the rocket body was given for the installation of the TX-20 sustainer solid-propellant engine from the Thiokol company. This product was developed for the MGM-29 Sergeant operational-tactical missile and showed very high performance. The engine with a length of 5, 9 m with a diameter of slightly less than 790 mm developed thrust up to 21, 7 tf. The existing charge was burned out in 29 seconds, ensuring the acceleration of the rocket to high speed.
The complete rocket had a length of 9, 25 m. The maximum body diameter was 790 mm. The starting mass was determined at 5.4 tons. The flight along a ballistic trajectory allowed the rocket to reach a speed of up to M = 6. The firing range, according to calculations, was supposed to reach 300 km.
The aeroballistic rocket was to be delivered to the launch site using a carrier aircraft. The function of transporting and launching weapons was entrusted to the Convair B-58 Hustler supersonic bomber. In the basic configuration, the armament of such an aircraft consisted of a free-fall drop container equipped with a special warhead. The creation of a new missile made it possible to expand the combat capabilities of the vehicle. In the late fifties, the B-58 was being tested and prepared for mass production, and therefore the success of the WS-199C project was of particular importance to American strategic aviation.
Suspension of a rocket on an airplane
As part of the "Virgo at Zenith" project, Convair has developed a special vehicle for transporting and dropping a promising rocket. Instead of the standard suspension device for the original container, it was proposed to mount a special pylon for the rocket. At the same time, no modifications to the aircraft structure were required.
The new pylon was a product of high elongation, placed under the bottom of the fuselage. The pylon body was made in the form of a fairing that protected the internal equipment from the incoming air flow. The upper cut of such a fairing was flat and adjoined to the bottom of the fuselage. The lower part of the pylon, in turn, was made in the form of a broken line, corresponding to the contours of the rocket. Inside the pylon there were locks to hold the rocket and electrical devices for communication with the aircraft equipment.
Bomber in flight
The draft design of the WS-199C High Virgo missile system was prepared in early 1958. Pentagon representatives got acquainted with the submitted documentation, and soon issued permission to continue the work. In June, the military department and contractors received a contract for the construction and testing of prototype missiles. The tests were planned to begin in the very near future.
The comparative simplicity of the project and the use of ready-made components made it possible to assemble the experimental missiles in the shortest possible time. However, it was not without its problems. There were difficulties with the delivery of an inertial navigation system, which is why the first two missiles were equipped with only an autopilot. As a consequence, they had to fly according to a predetermined program. Testing of autonomous controls was postponed to subsequent flights.
Resetting WS-199C from media for the first time
For test launches in early September 1958, one of the prototype B-58 aircraft, which received a new model pylon, flew to Eglin Air Force Base (Florida). Some of the flights were to be carried out at its airfield. In addition, the tests planned to use the base at Cape Canaveral. The planned missile routes ran over the central part of the Atlantic Ocean. The notional target areas were also on the high seas.
The test launch program looked like this. The carrier aircraft with a rocket under the fuselage took off from Eglin airbase or from Cape Canaveral, gained altitude and entered a combat course. At an altitude of 12.1 km at a carrier speed of M = 1.5, the rocket was dropped, which then had to turn on the engine and go to the required trajectory. The flight ended with the fall of the rocket into the sea. Throughout the flight, the accompanying aircraft had to receive telemetry.
Engine start point
The first test launch of the WS-199C rocket in a simplified control system took place on September 5, 1958. Dumping and removal from the carrier were done normally. By the 6th second of the flight, the engine turned on and went to the required mode. However, after a few seconds, the autopilot failed. The rocket began to make uncontrollable vibrations, and it had to be destroyed with the help of a self-liquidator. During the flight, the product rose to an altitude of 13 km and covered a distance of several tens of kilometers.
Telemetry analysis made it possible to find the cause of the accident. The control systems have been refined and the changes have been incorporated into the project. Full-scale ground checks were carried out before the next test launch. Only after that was permission issued for the second launch from the carrier aircraft.
On December 19, 1958, an experienced B-58 again dropped an aeroballistic missile. After a short horizontal acceleration, she began to climb sharply. Moving along a ballistic trajectory, WS-199C climbed to an altitude of 76 km, after which it switched to a descending segment of the trajectory. The maximum speed during this flight reached M = 6. The rocket fell into the ocean about 300 km from the launch point. The launch was deemed successful.
The rocket at the time of release (top right view). The cables for communication with the carrier are visible
On June 4, 1959, after the next stage of improving the rocket, the third test launch took place. This time, the carrier aircraft lifted a fully loaded rocket into the air, equipped with a standard guidance system. The mission of this flight was to obtain maximum range. Correcting the trajectory with the help of the rudders, the on-board automatics raised the rocket to an altitude of over 59 km. The flight ended 335 km from the drop point. It took exactly 4 minutes to overcome this distance. The inertial navigation system and controls worked without errors, and "Virgo at Zenith" successfully completed the task.
In the late fifties, the leading countries sent their first satellites into orbit. It was obvious that in the near future, space could become another place for the deployment of weapons, and therefore funds are needed to combat such threats. For this reason, there was a proposal to test the WS-199 family of missiles as an anti-satellite weapon. In mid-1959, Lockheed and Convair began preparations for a test attack on the spacecraft.
Cameras of the fourth experimental rocket
For the new test, a special rocket was prepared, which was noticeably different from the previous ones. Almost all of the hull and rudders were replaced with steel. The warhead simulator was removed from the head compartment, and the placement of instruments was also changed. Developed a new head fairing with transparent windows. A special system with 13 cameras pointing in different directions was installed under it. According to the flight program, 9 were supposed to monitor the approach of the rocket and the target satellite, and the rest were intended to survey the Earth. Before installing the fairing, the clips with the cameras were wrapped with a heat insulator. Finally, a parachute rescue system and a radio beacon were placed in the head fairing.
The training target was the Explorer 4 satellite, launched in July 1958. It was intended to study radiation belts and carried Geiger counters. The product was in orbit with an apogee of 2213 km and a perigee of 263 km. The interception was planned to be carried out when the satellite passed at a minimum distance from the Earth.
Special fairing for photographic equipment
Tests of the WS-199C rocket in an anti-satellite configuration took place on September 22, 1959. For a greater acceleration of the rocket with a subsequent increase in flight altitude, the carrier developed a speed of M = 2. The uncoupling and subsequent procedures were carried out normally. But a few seconds after the release, the rocket transmitted a message about the failure of the control systems. At the 30th second of the flight, communication with her was lost. A contrail was seen from the ground, indicating that the missile had entered a ballistic trajectory, but the exact flight parameters could not be established.
Communication failure soon led to the loss of the missile. As the testers could tell, WS-199C returned and fell into the ocean. However, a long search did not bring any results. The exact place where the rocket fell is still unknown. Together with the prototype, cameras and their films went to the bottom, which made it possible to evaluate the effectiveness of firing at a satellite. However, the result was hardly outstanding, since Explorer 4 remained in its orbit.
Anti-satellite "Virgo at zenith" at the time of reset
Of the four High Virgo test runs, only half were successful. The other two, through the fault of the control equipment, turned out to be emergency. In the fall of 1959, specialists from the development companies and the American Ministry of Defense analyzed the collected data and determined the further fate of the project.
In its current form, the Lockheed WS-199C High Virgo aeroballistic missile could not enter service and improve the combat capabilities of the B-58 Hustler aircraft. However, the direction as a whole was of interest to the Air Force. In this regard, the customer ordered to complete work on the topic "Virgo at its zenith", but to use the developments on this project when creating the next ballistic missile. The main result of the ensuing development work was the new GAM-87 Skybolt rocket.
As part of the Air Force program, codenamed WS-199, US defense companies have developed two air-launched ballistic missiles. The resulting products showed fairly high characteristics, but still were not suitable for adoption. However, during the design and testing, it was possible to accumulate a lot of experience and collect the necessary data on the real operation of such weapons. The developments, solutions and projects WS-199B and WS-199C soon found application in the creation of a new aeroballistic rocket.
