Weapon system

This article is about naming of US military programs. For the general topic of weapons systems and for other US designations, see Weapon. For United States military aircraft designation systems, see Joint Electronics Type Designation System.

Legend for Numeric Designations

CL: Lockheed

D: Douglas

NA: North American[1]

WS (Weapon System)

Weapon System is a United States military term that designated, along with a weapon system number (e.g., WS-110), military experimental (MX)^[1] weapons prior to official naming (e.g., under a military aircraft designation system. Preceded by the first Skunk Works program (MX-813 for the Convair XF-92 in 1946),^[2]:76 the earliest^{[verification needed]} "WS" designation was the 1954 WS-117L.^[3]:22 Circa February 1950, an Air Research and Development Command "study prepared by Maj Gen Gordon P. Saville ... recommended that a 'systems approach' to new weapons be adopted [whereby] development of a weapon "system" required development of support equipment as well as the actual hardware itself."^[2]:166

The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger in November 1949 was decided by the USAF to be built around a fire-control system^[4]--"the real beginning of the weapon system approach [and the] aircraft would be integrated into the weapon system "as a whole from the beginning, so the characteristics of each component were compatible with the others.".^[5]

US weapon programs often were initiated by numbered government specifications such as an Advanced Development Objective (e.g., ADO-40) or a General Operational Requirement (e.g., GOR.80), although some programs were initially identified by contractor numbers (e.g., CL-282).¹

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

List of numbered programs for US military systems

Number	Link to Wikipage
Project 3[6]:67	TCP for technical intelligence collection systems
Program 101, 102 (GOR-170)[2]	Samos (satellite)
WS-104A	SM-64 Navaho
WS-107A	SM-65 Atlas
WS-110	XB-70 Valkyrie
WS-117L (GOR.80)[6]:80–87	Advanced Reconnaissance System (originally Project 1115);[3]:30 recoverable capsule - Pied Piper/Sentry/SAMOS; television transmission - unfeasible;:87Subsystem G: MiDAS
WS-119B (USAF 7795)[6]:139	Bold Orion ASAT
WS-119L	Project Moby Dick (originally Project Genetrix)[3]:31–32
WS-120A	BGM-75 AICBM
Article 121	Lockheed A-12
WS-124A	Project Flying Cloud[7]
WS-125	(B-72)
WS-133A (Program 494L)	LGM-30 Minuteman
GOR 148	AGM-28 Hound Dog
WS-199	Anti-satellite weapon
WS-199B	Bold Orion
WS-199C	High Virgo
WS-199D	Alpha Draco
WS-201A	1954 interceptor
NA-211	interceptor design similar to fighter-bomber design that would become North American F-107
NA-212	North American F-107
WS-224A	Phase I: BMEWS, Phase II: Wizard missile system[8]
CL-282[6]:71	Lockheed U-2
WS-306A	Republic F-105 Thunderchief (misidentified as WS-3061)
WS315A	PGM-17 Thor missile[9]
MX-324	Northrop XP-79
WS-324A	General Dynamics F-111
CL-400[6]:149	Lockheed CL-400 Suntan
Program 437 (ADO-40)[3]:120	"nonorbital collision course satellite interceptor" using modified Thor
Program 437 X (AP)	Alternate payload (AP) for satellite inspection ("a heritage of SAINT")[3]:125
Program 437 Y[3]:128	second development plan for Program 437 (later renamed Program 922)
Program 505[3]:118	MUDFLAP ASAT
MX-544[10]	US copy of V-1 flying bomb (Republic-Ford JB-2 "Loon")
D-558	Douglas Skystreak, Skyrocket
Project 572	Distant Early Warning Line
MX-606	cruise missile precursor to Bomarc
Air Force System 609A	Blue Scout
Air Force System 621B[11]	GPS
DSP-647[6]:99	Defense Support Program
MX-653[3]	Bell X-1
MX-770	SM-64 Navaho
MX-771	Navy tactical cruise missile superseded by MX-773
MX-773	SSM-N-8 Regulus
MX-774	feasibility designs for subsonic and supersonic surface-to-surface missiles (three WSPG launches July–December 1948)[12] leading to SM-65 Atlas
MX-776A	RTV-A-4 Shrike
MX-776B	GAM-63 RASCAL
MX-813	Convair XF-92
Program 893[3]:128	ICBM ASAT
MX-904	GAR-1 Falcon missile
Program 922[3]:129	rename of Program 437 Y
System 1393	Western Electric RCDC for the Improved Nike Hercules Air Defense Guided Missile System
Project MX-1554	1954 Interceptor (Convair's proposed airframe was used for an interim interceptor—F-102A; as well as the 1954 interceptor-- F-102B; Republic's proposed design was used for the separate F-103 project.)
MX-1589	nuclear-powered Convair B-36
MX-1626 (FZP-110)	initial Convair proposal for eventual Convair B-58 Hustler award
MX-1712	Boeing Generalized Bomber Study (GEBO II) proposal]] (competitor against winning Convair MX-1712 design for B-58 Hustler)
MX-1599	CIM-10 Bomarc
MX-1964	Convair B-58 Hustler (previously MX-1626)
MX-1965	Boeing XB-59

References

^1 When a government program number is not available, a contractor number (if available) is used in the table, e.g., Lockheed CL-282 for the U-2.

1. 
   ^ http://www.acronymfinder.com/Military-and-Government/MX.html
   


2. 
   ^ ^ab Daso, Dik (Major, USAF) (September 1997). Architects of American Air Supremacy: General Hap Arnold and Dr Theodore von Kármán. Air University Press. pp. 76, 166..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
   


3. 
   ^ ^abcdefghi Stares, Paul B. "The Militarization of Space". Retrieved 2008-11-24.
   


4. 
   ^ Donald 2003, pp. 68–69
   


5. 
   ^ Grant Historical Study No. 126 p. 53
   


6. 
   ^ ^abcdef Burroughs, William E. (1988) [1986]. Deep Black (paperback ed.). New York: Berkley Publishing Group. ISBN 0-425-10879-1.
   


7. 
   ^ Parsch, Andreas (21 March 2006). "WS-124A Flying Cloud". Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missiles, Appendix 4: Undesignated Vehicles. Designation-Systems. Retrieved 2017-12-10.
   


8. 
   ^ Cite NORAD Historical Summary 1958 January–June, p. 106
   


9. 
   ^ "Correspondence: Weapon System" (Flighglobal/Archive). Flight. 6 February 1959. Retrieved 2011-09-13.
   


10. 
    ^ Cooksley, Peter G (1979). Flying Bomb. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons. p. 141.
    


11. 
    ^ Preston, Bob (1994). "Plowshares and Power: The Military Use of Civil Space". p. 250.
    


12. 
    ^ Braun, Wernher von; Ordway III, Frederick I; Dooling, David Jr (1985) [1975]. Space Travel: A History. New York: Harper & Row. p. 132. ISBN 0-06-181898-4.
    

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