USAF Intelligence Analyst explains why the B61 and other “Small” atomic bombs are more dangerous than big ones

B61

The B61 “Silver Bullet” is today’s tactical nuclear weapon. The early B61 was a controllable force, weapon, allowing it to be “dialed” to become less-than or greater-than the 12.5 kiloton atomic bomb at Hiroshima. The force is measured in kilotons, with one kiloton equal to 1,000 tons of TNT.

The B61 nuclear bomb is the primary thermonuclear weapon in the US Enduring Stockpile following the end of the Cold War.

The bomb has been deployed by a very wide variety of US military aircraft. Aircraft cleared for its use have included the B-58 Hustler, B-1, B-2, B-52, and FB-111 strategic bomber aircraft; the F-100 Super Sabre, F-104 Starfighter, F-105 Thunderchief, F-111 and F-4 Phantom II fighter bombers; the A-4 Skyhawk, A-6 Intruder, and A-7 Corsair II attack aircraft; the F-15 Eagle and F-15E Strike Eagle; British, German and Italian Panavia Tornado IDS aircraft. US Air Force (USAF), Belgian, Turkish Air Force and Dutch F-16 Fighting Falcon can also carry the B61. Since the F-22 Raptor is not used for the nuclear mission the B61 is instead carried by the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II.

The B61 is a variable yield, kiloton-range weapon called “Full Fusing Option”(FUFO) or “Dial-a-yield” by many service personnel. The bomb was built for two purposes; strategic results which affects global outcome and tactical results which effect battlefield outcome.

More dangerous than big ones

R. W. Carmichael, former USAF Intelligence Analyst, explains on Quora;

‘“Small” atomic bombs are incredibly more dangerous than big ones.

‘This is a 152-mm Russian nuclear artillery shell. The US and China and France and Britain, among others, also have them.

‘The problem that killed their use is that tactical missiles are easier to use and have far better range and reliability. (And ultimately are cheaper.)
‘But the discussion about that that has led to a lot of re-thinking about it was the development of the B61 “dialable” nuclear freefall bomb. This bomb could be dialed from a very small yield to a very large yield.

‘But after it was fielded, a lot of rethinking started because the lower end of the yield scale overlapped that of large conventional bombs. This led many potential commanders to believe that a B61 dialed down to a low yield was the same as a very large conventional bomb. That presents a huge danger in that if you drop a dialed-back B61 on someone, they are going to react the same as if it is a full-sized nuclear explosion. If you are on the receiving end, the difference is negligible.

The most dangerous weapons on the battlefield

‘The B61 has made the modern battlefield far more dangerous and nuclear artillery and other “small” nuclear weapons fall into the same category of weapons that can unexpectedly and uncontrollably lead to a massive nuclear exchange.’

Carmichael concludes;

‘These are the most dangerous weapons on the battlefield because they are the most susceptible to misuse and unintended escalation.’

Photo credit: Airman 1st Class Devan Halstead / U.S. Air Force