Archie to SAM: A Short Operational History of Ground-Based Air ...

FROM GUNS TO MISSILES
Bomarc failed for several reasons, including rising costs and
slipping schedules. The threat changed from bombers before
1955 to intercontinental ballistic missiles in the late 1950s or
bomber-launched, air-to-surface missiles, weapons that surpassed
the Bomarc’s capabilities. In addition, the United States
adopted a strategy of offensive deterrence; that is, building up
American nuclear offensive capabilities at the expense of defense.
Finally, the improved performance of the Nike missiles
duplicated, if not surpassed, the capabilities of Bomarc. 38
Other countries also engaged in designing, building, and
testing SAMs (fig. 44). The British put their first SAM, the
Bloodhound, into service in 1958; the Thunderbird in 1960;
and the Seaslug in 1962 (fig. 45). These first-generation missiles
had command guidance systems and were large (about
20 feet in length). 39 The French worked on the PARCA and the
Figure 44. Thunderbird. Thunderbird was an early Royal Navy SAM.
(Reprinted from http://www.nms.ac.uk/…/the%20collection/rockets_missiles.
htm.)
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