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[Web Editor's Note: The author below, Ron
Chiste, served as a Lieutenant with the 3AD's 6/40 Arty Bn during
1970-72, which included nuclear weapons duties. He came to the
Division from OCS and with a college Masters Degree in physics.
In 1993 he retired as a full Colonel with a combined service
of 25 years in the Regular Army, the Reserves, and National Guard.
His long-term and last assignment was as Division Artillery Commander
with the 50th Armored Division of the National Guard, headquartered
in New Jersey and consisting of units from several states. He
is also retired from a civilian career as a school teacher and
school superintendent.]
From Ron Chiste in 2005:
6th Bn, 40th Field Artillery, 3AD
During the time I served in 6/40 FA (8" self-propelled
howitzer), many 3rd Armored units were nuclear capable. Since
I was there in Hanau, Germany, from 1970-72, I can only speak
for that time and a short time before and after. Included among
those nuclear units were the 8" General Support FA BN, the
three 155mm Direct Support FA BNs, the Honest John Rocket BN,
and the Engineer BN, which had the atomic demolitions. Each of
these battalions trained with exact replicas of the actual war
reserve weapons, and the training was intense, exacting, and
frequent. The actual war reserve weapons were stored throughout
Western Europe in secured sites called NATO Sites. The site in
which our nukes were stored was designated NATO Site #5 located
on Fliegerhorst Kaserne just outside of Hanau. I have no idea
how many of these sites existed, but there must have been a minimum
of five.
NATO Site 5 consisted of two earthen covered bunkers that
measured about 50 x 150 feet each. My exact memory of the bunker
dimensions may be off and there may have been three of them,
but those points don't really matter. Each of the bunkers was
sealed by a large, heavy, metal door that slid on tracks and
was locked and padlocked. The bunkers were also surrounded by
two high walls of barbed wire with a guard post at each of the
four corners. The guard posts were manned 24 hours per day, every
day. The guards could patrol the area by walking the narrow space
between the walls of barbed wire from their respective guard
post to the adjacent one. No one was allowed inside the second
wall of wire where the bunkers were located. An officer of the
guard was on duty around the clock for a 24 hour tour during
which time he would post the guards, inspect them, and routinely
check the perimeter. It was perhaps the most boring duty any
young lieutenant or enlisted man could pull, but it came around
to everyone in each of the units whose war reserve nukes were
stored there.
On one of my days as officer of the guard an army staff car
pulled up to the guardhouse. A field grade officer and a couple
of civilians got out. They informed me that they were here from
the States to conduct an inspection of the weapons in the bunkers.
Of course the identification they possessed was extensive, was
checked, verified and authenticated. The field grade informed
me that I was to accompany them and to unlock the padlocks to
the doors.
After informing the guards that we were about to enter the
restricted area, we proceeded to the first bunker. We unlocked
the door and then rolled it back enough to allow us to enter.
As soon as my eyes scanned the interior of the bunker my knees
began shaking. It was a feeling I had never experienced. Filling
the bunker were very orderly rows of nuclear rounds: 8"
artillery nukes, 155mm artillery nukes, Honest John nuke warheads,
and atomic demolitions. The artillery nukes all had the PAL Device
(permissive action link) attached to prevent them from being
fired without authorization, but the rounds were configured for
firing and only needed the fuse installed. I don't know how many
items were in these bunkers other than to say that there was
only about five feet between each of them and between the rows.
I knew that there had to be at least four more sites like this
one. I was struck by the enormity of destructive power in this
bunker. The thought that flashed through my mind, having come
into the army after teaching HS physics for four years, was:
"Holy shit, there is enough stuff in here to blow the earth
off its axis!" I still believe there was.
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