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Mgr-1 Honest John




The MGR-1 "Honest John" Rocket was the first Nuclear surface-to-surface rocket in the US arsenal. Designated Artillery Rocket XM31, the first such missile was tested in 1951 , and deployed in January 1953 . The designator was changed to M31 in September, 1953 and were deployed in Europe several months later.

The M31 consisted of a truck-mounted, unguided, solid-fueled rocket that was transported in three separate parts that were combined in the field, mounted on an M289 launcher, and aimed and fired in about 5 minutes. The rockets were originally outfitted with a W7 Dial-a-yield nuclear warhead with a yield of up to 20 Kilotons , and later a W31 warhead with a yield of up to 40 kt. They had a range between 5.5 km (3.4 miles) and 24.8 km (15.4 miles).

There were two versions, the MGR-1A and the MGR-1B. The MGR-1A possessed a range of 48 kilometers, a takeoff thrust of 400 kN, a takeoff weight of 2720 kg, a diameter of 580 mm and a length of 8.32 m. The MGR-1B possessed a range of 37 kilometers, a launch thrust of 382 kN, a launch weight of 2040 kg, a diameter of 760 mm and a length of 7.56 m.

Production of the MGR-1 and variants finished in 1965 with a total production run of more than 7,000 rockets. The system was replaced with the MGM-52 Lance missile in 1973 , but were deployed with US Army National Guard units as late as 1982 .


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  • http://www.designation-systems.net/dusrm/r-1.html

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