Whoops apocalypse!!!

THE Pentagon is investigating how a B-52 bomber was mistakenly armed with six nuclear warheads last week and allowed to fly more than 2400km across the US before anyone noticed the weapons were missing.

A squadron commander in charge of the warheads, each of which has up to 10 times the destructive power of the Hiroshima atom bomb, has been relieved of his duties while crews responsible for the error have been banned from handling munitions.

President George W. Bush and Defence Secretary Robert Gates were informed immediately after the mistake came to light, and Mr Gates had asked for daily briefings on the air force inquiry, said Defence Department press secretary Geoff Morrell.

Although officials insisted yesterday that there was never any danger of the warheads detonating, the disclosure will shake confidence in the security of the US’s vast nuclear arsenal.

Washington has often voiced concerns about sloppy controls over nuclear material in the former Soviet Union, but this incident could not have been closer to home. The Pentagon would not provide specifics, citing secrecy rules, but an expert said the incident was unprecedented, and pointed to a disturbing lapse in the air force’s command-and-control system.

“It seems so fantastic that so many points, checks can dysfunction,” said Hans Kristensen, an expert on US nuclear forces.

“We have so many points and checks specifically so we don’t have these kinds of incidents,” he said.

The breach originally was reported by the Military Times newspaper on Wednesday and was confirmed by the Pentagon later in the day.

Mr Kristensen said he knew of no other publicly acknowledged case of live nuclear weapons being flown on bombers since the late 1960s. Nuclear weapons are normally transferred on cargo planes, never on the wings of bombers, he added.

A B-52 took off from Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, last Thursday and flew for more than three hours before landing at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana.

It was only then that crews discovered the six advanced cruise missiles mounted on the bombers’ wings were armed with W80-1 warheads, which have yields of between 5 and 150 kilotons.

According to officials, the weapons are designed with multiple safety features that ensure the warheads do not detonate accidentally.

Arming the weapons requires a number of stringent protocols and authentication codes that must be followed for detonation. They are designed to withstand a significant impact, including an aircraft crash, without detonating. “Standards are very exacting when it comes to munitions handling,” said air force spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Thomas. “All evidence we have seen so far points to an isolated mistake.

“It is important to note that munitions were safe, secure and under military control at all times. The error was discovered by airmen during internal air force checks.”

An investigation headed by Major General Douglas Raaberg, director of Air and Space Operations at Air Combat Command Headquarters, has begun to find the cause of the mistake and discover how strict safeguards apparently failed. The Air Combat Command has ordered a complete stand down next Friday to review procedures, officials confirmed yesterday.

Military experts said there was no risk of a nuclear detonation even if the B-52 had crashed, because the warheads can only be activated with presidential approval.

But Ike Skelton, Democratic chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, called the mishandling of the weapons “deeply disturbing”. “There is no more serious issue than the security of nuclear weapons,” he said.

“The American people, our friends, and our potential adversaries must be confident that the highest standards are in place when it comes to our nuclear arsenal.”