Editing SSM-N-8 Regulus (section)

===Design and development===

==== Background ====
Nazi Germany's use of the [[V-1 flying bomb]] during [[World War II]] marked the first combat deployment of a [[cruise missile]], highlighting the potential of a new class of weapon.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1980-12-01 |title=The Birth of Guided Missiles |url=https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/1980/december/birth-guided-missiles |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=U.S. Naval Institute |language=en}}</ref> Even before [[German Instrument of Surrender|Germany's surrender]], the United States captured, [[Reverse engineering|reverse-engineered]], and [[Mass production|mass-produced]] its own version of the V-1, the [[Republic-Ford JB-2|Republic-Ford JB-2 Loon]], intended for use against [[Empire of Japan|Japan]]. With the war's end and the onset of the [[Cold War]], the U.S. sought new ways to deploy [[Nuclear weapon|nuclear warheads]]. One proposal, put forward by Captain [[Thomas B. Klakring|Thomas Klakring]], was to launch nuclear missiles from submarines. He argued that submarines would be far more difficult to detect and attack than surface ships, such as [[Aircraft carrier|aircraft carriers]], while also introducing a new method of warhead delivery beyond [[aircraft]]. At the time, [[Bomber|bombers]] were the U.S. military's only means of delivering nuclear warheads, a reliance that threatened to diminish the Navy's role and overemphasize a single approach to nuclear strategy.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=1993-04-01 |title=Blasts from the Past |url=https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/1993/april/blasts-past |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=U.S. Naval Institute |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-11-04 |title=Battle Stations Missile! |url=https://www.usni.org/magazines/naval-history-magazine/2003/august/battle-stations-missile |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=U.S. Naval Institute |language=en}}</ref>

Klakring proposed launching the Loom from submarines to test his concept. Work began in 1946, and by 1947, [[USS Cusk|USS ''Cusk'']] became the first U.S. submarine to fire a guided missile. Testing continued for several years, but significant issues arose. ''Cusk'' nearly sank when a Loom exploded on deck, and the missile itself was slow, had limited range and payload, and was impractical for military use. Despite these shortcomings, the tests successfully demonstrated how a submarine could surface, launch a missile, and submerge again, making it difficult for an enemy to retaliate. The Navy acknowledged the concept’s potential but recognized the need for a missile specifically designed for submarine deployment.<ref name=":0" />

==== Development ====
Development of such a missile began with [[Grumman]]'s [[SSM-N-6 Rigel]] and the [[Applied Physics Laboratory|Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory's]] [[SSM-N-2 Triton]]. However, work did not begin in earnest until August of 1947, days after the [[United States Army Air Forces|United States Army Air Force]] awarded a contract for the ground-based [[MGM-1 Matador]] [[cruise missile]]. The Navy, not wanting to lose its edge in missile development, began Project Regulus with the same equipment used in the Matador. On  17 November 1947, a contract was awarded to Chance Vought, which previously investigated a similar project as part of a study on "pilotless missiles". The company, desperate for government contracts as the money-making [[Vought F4U Corsair|F4U Corsair]] production line was nearing an end, focused on a practical design that could be brought into service quickly. With its survival at stake, the company invested heavily in [[research and development]], drawing from experience with jet fighter projects such as the [[Vought XF5U|XF5U Flying Flapjack]], [[Vought F6U Pirate|F6U Pirate]], and [[Vought F7U Cutlass|F7U Cutlass]]. The Navy initially planned on having each missile be operational in a sequential order, starting with the simple Regulus and ending with the more complex but capable Triton in 1960. However, both the Rigel and Triton were powered by [[Ramjet|ramjets]], which presented a significant challenge as the technology was too immature for immediate use, eventually leading to both programs' cancellation.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Stumpf |first=David |title=Regulus: The Forgotten Weapon |publisher=[[Turner Publishing Company]] |isbn=978-1563112775 |publication-date=January 1, 1997}}</ref>{{Rp|page=51}}<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=The Evolution of the Cruise Missile |url=https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/tr/pdf/ADA162646.pdf |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250202113644/https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/tr/pdf/ADA162646.pdf |archive-date=2025-02-02 |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=apps.dtic.mil}}</ref>{{Rp|page=114, 117}}

==== Design ====
The contract required the missile to have a range of {{convert|500|nmi|km}} at Mach 0.85, a {{convert|3000|lb|kg|adj=on}} warhead, and a [[circular error probable]] (margin of error) of {{convert|25|nmi|km}}.<ref name=":1" />{{Rp|page=114}} Regulus was designed to be {{convert|30|ft|m}} long, {{convert|10|ft|m}} in wingspan, {{convert|4|ft|m}} in diameter, and would weigh between {{convert|10000|and|12000|lb|kg}}. The missile somewhat resembled the contemporary [[Republic F-84 Thunderjet|F-84 Thunderjet]] fighter aircraft, but without a cockpit, and test versions were equipped with landing gear so that they could be recovered and re-used.<ref name="ReferenceA" /> After launch, Regulus would be guided toward its target by control stations, typically by submarines or surface ships equipped with guidance equipment. It could also be flown remotely by chase aircraft.<ref name="ReferenceA" /> (Later, with the "Trounce" system (Tactical Radar Omnidirectional Underwater Navigational Control Equipment), one submarine could guide it).<ref>Friedman, p. 178</ref> Army-Navy competition complicated both the Matador's and the Regulus' developments. The missiles looked alike and used the same engine. They had nearly identical performances, schedules, and costs. Under pressure to reduce defense spending, the [[United States Department of Defense]] ordered the Navy to determine if Matador could be adapted for their use. The Navy concluded that the Navy's Regulus could perform the Navy mission better.<ref>David K. Stumpf, ''Regulus: America's First Nuclear Submarine Missile'', Turner Publishing Company, 1996. pp 21-22</ref>

Regulus had some advantages over Matador. It required only two guidance stations while Matador required three.<ref>Friedman, p. 263</ref> It could also be launched quicker, as Matador's boosters had to be fitted while the missile was on the launcher while Regulus was stowed with its boosters attached. Finally, Chance Vought built a recoverable version of the missile, designated '''KDU-1''' and also used as a target drone, so that even though a Regulus test vehicle was more expensive to build, Regulus was cheaper to use over a series of tests. The Navy program continued, and the first Regulus flew in March 1951.

Due to its size and regulations concerning [[oversize load]]s on highways, Chance Vought collaborated with a firm that specialized in trucking oversize loads to develop a special tractor trailer combination which could move a Regulus I missile.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=1t4DAAAAMBAJ&dq=1954+Popular+Mechanics+January&pg=PA128 Build Special Trailer To Move Bulky Missile."] ''Popular Mechanics'', June 1954, p. 128.</ref>