View source for AIR-2 Genie

{{short description|American nuclear air-to-air rocket}}
{{pp-semi-indef|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2023}}
{{Infobox weapon
|is_missile=yes
|name=AIR-2 Genie
| image= AIR-2A Genie 2.jpg
| image_size = 300
|caption=AIR-2A Genie nuclear air-to-air rocket on an MF-9 Transport Trailer at [[Hill Aerospace Museum]]
|origin= United States
|type=Short-range air-to-air rocket
|used_by=
|manufacturer=[[Douglas Aircraft Company]]
|unit_cost=
|propellant=[[Solid-fuel rocket|Solid fuel]]
|production_date=1957–1962
|service=1958–1985
|engine=Thiokol SR49
|weight={{convert|822|lb|lk=on|1}}
|length={{convert|9|ft|8|in}}
|height=
|diameter={{convert|17.5|in|abbr=on|1}}
|wingspan={{convert|3|ft|.4|in|abbr=on|1}}
|speed=[[Mach number|Mach 3.3]]
|vehicle_range={{convert|6|mi|1}}
|ceiling=
|altitude=
|filling=1.5 kT nuclear
|filling_weight=
|guidance=
|detonation=
}}

The [[Douglas Aircraft Company|Douglas]] '''AIR-2 Genie''' (previous designation '''MB-1''') was an unguided [[air-to-air rocket]] with a 1.5 kt [[W25 (nuclear warhead)|W25]] [[nuclear warhead]].<ref name="Boeing">{{Cite web |title=Historical Snapshot: MB-1/AIR-2 Genie Missile |url=https://www.boeing.com/history/products/mb-1-air-2-genie-missile.page |access-date=2023-05-24 |website=[[Boeing]]}}</ref> It was deployed by the [[United States Air Force]] (USAF 1957–1985) and Canada ([[Royal Canadian Air Force]] 1965–1968, [[Canadian Forces Air Command|Air Command]] 1968–1984)<ref name="canada-nw">{{Cite book |last=Clearwater |first=John |url=https://archive.org/details/canadiannuclearw0000clea |title=Canadian Nuclear Weapons: The Untold Story of Canada's Cold War Arsenal |publisher=Dundurn Press |year=1998 |isbn=9781554881215 |location=Toronto |oclc=244771111 |url-access=registration}}</ref> during the [[Cold War]]. Production ended in 1962 after over 3,000 were made, with some related training and test derivatives being produced later.

==Development==
[[File:Convair F-106A Delta Dart 1.jpg|thumb|A [[Convair F-106 Delta Dart|Convair F-106]] of the [[California Air National Guard]] fires an [[Dummy round|inert]] version of the Genie]]
[[File:Plumbbob John Nuclear Test.jpg|thumb|right|upright|[[Operation Plumbbob|Plumbbob John nuclear test]], the only live test of a Genie rocket, on 19 July 1957. Fired from a US Air Force [[F-89 Scorpion|F-89J]] over [[Yucca Flats]], [[Nevada Test Site]] at an altitude of ~15,000 ft (4.5&nbsp;km).]]

The interception of [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] [[strategic bomber]]s was a major military preoccupation of the late 1940s and 1950s.  The revelation in 1947 that the [[Soviet Union]] had produced a [[Reverse engineering|reverse-engineered]] copy of the [[Boeing B-29 Superfortress]], the [[Tupolev Tu-4]] ([[NATO reporting name]] "Bull"), which could reach the continental United States in a one-way attack, followed by the Soviets developing their own [[atomic bomb]] in 1949, produced considerable anxiety.

The [[World War II]]-age [[Fighter aircraft|fighter]] armament of [[machine gun]]s and [[cannon]] were inadequate to stop attacks by massed formations of high-speed bombers. Firing large volleys of unguided [[Rocket (weapon)|rocket]]s into bomber formations was not much better, and true [[air-to-air missile]]s were in their infancy. In 1954 [[Douglas Aircraft]] began a program to investigate the possibility of a nuclear-armed air-to-air weapon. To ensure simplicity and reliability, the weapon would be unguided, since the large blast radius made precise accuracy unnecessary.

The then top-secret project had various code names, such as ''Bird Dog'', ''Ding Dong'', and ''High Card''.  Full-scale development began in 1955, with test firing of inert warhead rockets commencing in early 1956.  The final design carried a 1.5-[[kiloton]] [[W25 nuclear warhead]] and was powered by a [[Thiokol]] SR49-TC-1 solid-fuel [[rocket engine]] of {{convert|162|kN|abbr=on}} thrust, sufficient to accelerate the rocket to Mach 3.3 during its two-second burn.{{fv|date=May 2025|reason=Source does not state burn time.}} Total flight time was about 12 seconds, during which time the rocket covered {{convert|10|km|abbr=on}}. Targeting, arming, and firing of the weapon were coordinated by the launch aircraft's fire-control system. Detonation was by time-delay [[fuze]], although the fuzing mechanism would not arm the warhead until engine burn-out, to give the launch aircraft sufficient time to turn and escape.  However, there was no mechanism for disarming the warhead after launch.  Lethal radius of the blast was estimated to be about {{convert|300|m}}.  Once fired, the Genie's short flight-time and large blast radius made it virtually impossible for a bomber to avoid destruction.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Parsch |first=Andreas |date=2002 |title=Douglas AIR-2 Genie |url=http://www.designation-systems.net/dusrm/r-2.html |access-date= |website=Designation-Systems.Net}}</ref>

The new rocket entered service with the designation '''MB-1''' ''Genie'' in 1957. The first interceptor squadrons to carry the MB-1 declared initial operational capability on 1 January 1957, when a handful of rockets and 15 [[F-89 Scorpion|F-89]] interceptors capable of carrying them were deployed at [[Wurtsmith Air Force Base]] in northern Michigan and [[Hamilton Air Force Base]] outside San Francisco.  By the next year, 268 F-89s had received the necessary wing pylon and fire-control system modifications to carry the weapon. While officially known as the MB-1 ''Genie'', the rocket was often nicknamed "Ding-Dong" by crews and pilots. About 3,150 Genie rockets were produced before production ended in 1963. In 1962 the weapon was redesignated '''AIR-2A Genie'''. Many rounds were upgraded with improved, longer-duration rocket motors; the upgraded weapons sometimes known (apparently only semi-officially) as '''AIR-2B'''. An inert training round, originally '''MB-1-T''' and later '''ATR-2A''', was also produced in small numbers – the training version was known to Canadian crews as the "dum-dum".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dorr |first=Robert F. |title=McDonnell F-101 Voodoo |publisher=Osprey Pub. |year=1987 |isbn=9780850457520 |location=Osceola, Wis. |oclc=17550154}}</ref>

[[File:Plumbbob John 003.jpg|thumb|An [[F-89 Scorpion]] firing the live Genie used in the Plumbbob John test]]

A live Genie was detonated only once, in [[Operation Plumbbob]] on 19 July 1957. It was fired by USAF Captain Eric William Hutchison (pilot) and USAF Captain Alfred C. Barbee (radar operator) flying an [[F-89 Scorpion|F-89J]] over [[Yucca Flats]]. Sources vary as to the height of the blast, but it was between {{convert|18500 and 20000|ft|abbr=on}} above mean sea level.<ref>[http://www.dtra.mil/documents/ntpr/historical/1957%20-%20DNA%206006F%20-%20Shot%20DIABLO%20to%20FRANKLIN%20PRIME%20-%20Operatio.pdf SHOTS DIABLO TO FRANKLIN PRIME The Mid-Series Tests of the PLUMBBOB Series 15 JULY – 30 AUGUST 1957] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120916173103/http://www.dtra.mil/documents/ntpr/historical/1957%20-%20DNA%206006F%20-%20Shot%20DIABLO%20to%20FRANKLIN%20PRIME%20-%20Operatio.pdf |date=16 September 2012 }}</ref> A group of five USAF officers volunteered to stand uncovered in their light summer uniforms underneath the blast to prove that the weapon was safe for use over populated areas. They were photographed by Department of Defense photographer George Yoshitake who stood there with them.<ref>{{cite web |date=19 July 1957 |title=Five at Ground Zero |url=http://www.ctbto.org/specials/testing-times/19-july-1957-five-at-ground-zero/ |access-date=17 February 2014 |publisher=[[CTBTO]]}}</ref> Gamma and neutron doses received by observers on the ground were negligible. Doses received by aircrew were highest for the fliers assigned to penetrate the airburst cloud ten minutes after explosion.<ref>[http://www.dtra.mil/documents/ntpr/factsheets/Plumbbob.pdf Defense Threat Reduction Agency. Public Affairs. Factsheet. ''Operation Plumbbob.''] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120722153558/http://www.dtra.mil/documents/ntpr/factsheets/Plumbbob.pdf |date=22 July 2012 }}</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20170719170504/https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/radiation/dir/mstreet/commeet/meet6/brief6/tab_f/br6f1l.txt Attachment 12. Preliminary report. Operation Plumbbob. Nevada Test Site, May-September 1957. Project 2.9 ''NUCLEAR RADIATION RECEIVED BY AIRCREWS FIRING THE MB-1 ROCKET''.]</ref> 
[[File:F-89J Montana ANG display Great Falls 2008.jpg|thumb|right|The Montana Air National Guard F-89J that launched the live Genie.]]
While in service with the U.S. Air Force, the Genie was carried operationally on the [[F-89 Scorpion]], [[F-101|F-101B Voodoo]], and the [[F-106 Delta Dart]].  While the Genie was originally intended to be carried by the [[F-104 Starfighter]] using a unique 'trapeze' launching rail, the project never proceeded beyond the testing phase. [[Convair]] offered an upgrade of the [[F-102 Delta Dagger]] that would have been Genie-capable, but it too was not adopted. Operational use of the Genie was discontinued in 1988 with the retirement of the F-106 interceptor.

The only other Genie user was Canada, whose [[CF-101 Voodoo]]s carried Genies until 1984 via a [[Nuclear sharing|dual-key arrangement]] where the missiles were kept under United States custody, and released to Canada under circumstances requiring their use.<ref name=canada-nw /> The [[RAF]] briefly considered the missile for use on the [[English Electric Lightning]].

Safety features included final arming by detecting the acceleration and deceleration of a fast aircraft at high altitude. The weapon was built too early to use a [[permissive action link]] security device.<ref name=canada-nw />

The F-89J that was used to launch the only live test is on static display at the [[Montana Air National Guard]] in [[Great Falls, Montana]].

==Operators==
[[File:CF-101B firing Genie 1982.jpeg|thumb|right|CF-101B of the [[Canadian Forces]] firing a Genie in 1982]]

;{{CAN}}
*[[Royal Canadian Air Force]]/[[Canadian Forces Air Command]]
;{{USA}}
*[[United States Air Force]]

==Surviving examples==

Below is a list of museums which have a Genie rocket in their collection:
*[[Air Force Armament Museum]], [[Eglin Air Force Base]], [[Florida]]
*[[Atlantic Canada Aviation Museum]], [[Halifax Regional Municipality|Halifax, Nova Scotia]]
*[[Hill Aerospace Museum]], [[Ogden, Utah]]
*[[MAPS Air Museum]], [[Akron-Canton Regional Airport]], [[Ohio]] ATR-2 with MF-9 trailer
*[[Museum of Aviation (Warner Robins)|Museum of Aviation]] at [[Robins Air Force Base]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]] ATR-2N with MF-9 trailer<ref>[http://www.museumofaviation.org/aircraftCollection/missiles_drones/04-air2a.htm Museum of Aviation Website] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928181459/http://www.museumofaviation.org/aircraftCollection/missiles_drones/04-air2a.htm |date=28 September 2007 }}</ref>
*[[National Museum of the United States Air Force]], [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]], [[Ohio]]<ref>[https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/197594/mcdonnell-douglas-air-2a-genie-rocket/ "McDonnell Douglas Air-2A Genie Rocket."] ''National Museum of the United States Air Force.'' Retrieved: 9 August 2015.</ref>
*[[Camp Withycombe|Oregon Military Museum at Camp Withycombe]], [[Clackamas, Oregon]]
*[[Pima Air & Space Museum]], [[Tucson, Arizona]] Inert round with trailer
*[[Selfridge Air National Guard Base Museum]], [[Harrison Township, Michigan]]
*[[Western Canada Aviation Museum]], [[Winnipeg]], [[Manitoba]], Canada
*[[Ellsworth Air and Space Museum]] at [[Ellsworth Air Force Base]], [[Rapid City, South Dakota]]
*[[Air Defence Museum]], [[CFB Bagotville]], [[3 Wing]], [[Saguenay, Quebec]], Canada
*[[Comox Air Force Museum]], [[CFB Comox]], [[19 Wing]], [[Comox, British Columbia]], [[British Columbia]], Canada
*[[Vermont National Guard Library and Museum]], [[Camp Johnson (Vermont)|Camp Johnson]], [[Colchester, Vermont|Colchester]], [[Vermont]]
*[[Jimmy Doolittle Air & Space Museum]], [[Travis Air Force Base]], [[California]]
*[[National Atomic Testing Museum]], [[Paradise, Nevada]]
*[[Malmstrom Air Force Base Museum]], [[Great Falls, Montana|Great Falls]], [[Montana]]
*[[National Museum of Nuclear Science & History]], [[Albuquerque, New Mexico]]

On 31 January 2024 a dilapidated air-to-air missile, later identified as an inert AIR-2 Genie, was reported to police in the city of [[Bellevue, Washington]] after being offered as a donation to the [[National Museum of the United States Air Force|National Museum of the U.S. Air Force]] in [[Dayton, Ohio]].<ref name="BBC">{{Cite news |last=Matza |first=Max |date=2024-02-03 |title=Inert nuclear missile found in US man's garage |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-68189568 |access-date=2024-02-03 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Blatchford |first=Taylor |date=2024-02-02 |title=Police investigate military-grade rocket in Bellevue garage |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/police-investigate-military-grade-rocket-in-bellevue-garage/ |access-date=2024-02-03 |work=Seattle Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Nuclear technology}}
* ''[[How to Photograph an Atomic Bomb]]''
* [[List of nuclear weapons]]
* [[AIM-26 Falcon]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}

* [http://www.boeing.com/history/products/mb-1-air-2-genie-missile.page MB-1/AIR-2 Genie page on Boeing.com]
* {{YouTube|BlE1BdOAfVc|"Film of ground observers viewing nuclear blast"}}

{{US military rockets}}
{{USAF missiles}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Air-2 Genie}}
[[Category:Air-to-air rockets of the United States]]
[[Category:Nuclear anti-aircraft weapons]]
[[Category:Unguided nuclear rockets of the United States]]
[[Category:Cold War rockets of the United States]]
[[Category:Nuclear weapons of Canada]]
[[Category:Nuclear missiles of the Cold War]]
[[Category:Military equipment introduced in the 1950s]]