Nuclear triad
Encyclopedia
A nuclear triad refers to a nuclear arsenal which consists of three components, traditionally strategic bomber
s, ICBMs and SLBMs. The purpose of having a three-branched nuclear capability is to significantly reduce the possibility that an enemy could destroy all of a nation's nuclear forces in a first-strike
attack; this, in turn, ensures a credible threat of a second strike
, and thus increases a nation's nuclear deterrence.
holds that a nuclear triad provides the best level of deterrence from attack, in reality, most nuclear powers do not have the military budget to sustain a full triad. Only the United States and Russia have maintained nuclear triads for most of the nuclear age. Both the US and the Soviet Union composed their triads along the same lines, including the following components:
The triad also gives the commander the possibility to use different types of weapons for the appropriate strike:
Tactical nuclear weapon
s are used in air, land and sea warfare. Air-to-air missiles and rockets, surface-to-air missiles, and small air-to-ground rockets, bombs, and precision munitions have been developed and deployed with nuclear warheads. Ground forces have included tactical nuclear artillery shells, surface-to-surface rockets, land mines, medium and small man-packable nuclear engineering demolition charges, even man-carried or vehicle-mounted recoilless rifles. Naval forces have carried nuclear-armed naval rocket-assisted and standard depth charges and torpedoes, and naval gunnery shells. Tactical nuclear weapons and the doctrine for their use is primarily for use in a non-strategic warfighting role destroying military forces in the battle area; they are not counted toward triad status.
and launch ready deployment for the US and former USSR by the SALT II treaty. Another example is the US, UK, and France do or have previously included a strategic nuclear strike mission for carrier-based aircraft, which especially in the past were far harder to track and target with ICBMs or strategic nuclear bombers than fixed bomber or missile bases, permitting some second-strike flexibility; this was the first sea-based deterrent before the SLBM. The US and UK jointly explored an air-launched strategic ballistic nuclear missile, the Skybolt, but canceled the program in favor of submarine-based missiles. In 1974 a Lockheed C-5 Galaxy successfully tested an air launch of a Minuteman
ICBM; this system was not deployed, but was used as a bargaining point in the SALT treaty negotiations with the USSR.
Strategic bomber
A strategic bomber is a heavy bomber aircraft designed to drop large amounts of ordnance onto a distant target for the purposes of debilitating an enemy's capacity to wage war. Unlike tactical bombers, which are used in the battle zone to attack troops and military equipment, strategic bombers are...
s, ICBMs and SLBMs. The purpose of having a three-branched nuclear capability is to significantly reduce the possibility that an enemy could destroy all of a nation's nuclear forces in a first-strike
First strike
In nuclear strategy, a first strike is a preemptive surprise attack employing overwhelming force. First strike capability is a country's ability to defeat another nuclear power by destroying its arsenal to the point where the attacking country can survive the weakened retaliation while the opposing...
attack; this, in turn, ensures a credible threat of a second strike
Second strike
In nuclear strategy, a second strike capability is a country's assured ability to respond to a nuclear attack with powerful nuclear retaliation against the attacker...
, and thus increases a nation's nuclear deterrence.
Traditional components
While traditional nuclear strategyNuclear strategy
Nuclear strategy involves the development of doctrines and strategies for the production and use of nuclear weapons.As a sub-branch of military strategy, nuclear strategy attempts to match nuclear weapons as means to political ends...
holds that a nuclear triad provides the best level of deterrence from attack, in reality, most nuclear powers do not have the military budget to sustain a full triad. Only the United States and Russia have maintained nuclear triads for most of the nuclear age. Both the US and the Soviet Union composed their triads along the same lines, including the following components:
- Bomber aircraft capable of delivering nuclear bombs (carrier-based or land-based; armed with bombs or missiles).
- Land-based missiles (MRBMs or ICBMs).
- Ballistic missile submarineBallistic missile submarineA ballistic missile submarine is a submarine equipped to launch ballistic missiles .-Description:Ballistic missile submarines are larger than any other type of submarine, in order to accommodate SLBMs such as the Russian R-29 or the American Trident...
s (SSBNs). Nuclear missiles launched from ships or submarines. Although in early years the sea leg was carrier aircraft based.
The triad also gives the commander the possibility to use different types of weapons for the appropriate strike:
- ICBMs allow for a long-range strike launched from a controlled or friendly environment. If launched from a fixed position, such as a missile silo, they are vulnerable to a first strike, though their interception once aloft is substantially difficultMissile defenseMissile defense is a system, weapon, or technology involved in the detection, tracking, interception and destruction of attacking missiles. Originally conceived as a defence against nuclear-armed Intercontinental ballistic missiles , its application has broadened to include shorter-ranged...
, Some ICBMs are either rail or road mobile. - SLBMs, launched from submarines, allow for a greater chance of survival from a first strike, giving the commander a second-strike capability. Some long-range submarine-launched cruise missiles are counted towards triad status, this was the first type of submarine-launched strategic second-strike nuclear weapon before ballistic missile submarines became available.
- Strategic bomberStrategic bomberA strategic bomber is a heavy bomber aircraft designed to drop large amounts of ordnance onto a distant target for the purposes of debilitating an enemy's capacity to wage war. Unlike tactical bombers, which are used in the battle zone to attack troops and military equipment, strategic bombers are...
s have greater flexibility in their deployment and weaponry. They can serve as both a first- and second-strike weapon. A bomber armed with AGM-129 ACMAGM-129 ACM* Missile of the same class** Ra'ad ** TAURUS KEPD 350 ** Storm Shadow -Notes:# Alleged violations of the Antideficiency Act in the Air Force’s procurement of advanced cruise missiles.FILE B-255831, Office of the General Counsel, United States General Accounting Office.# Union Calls for Strike by...
missiles, for example, could be classified as a first-strike weapon. A number of bombers often with aerial refuelingAerial refuelingAerial refueling, also called air refueling, in-flight refueling , air-to-air refueling or tanking, is the process of transferring fuel from one aircraft to another during flight....
aircraft kept at safe points would constitute a second-strike weapon. Some lighter aircraft can be used as either a first-strike weapon or if dispersed at small airfields or aboard an aircraft carrier can reasonably avoid a counterstrike giving them regional second-strike capacity, aircraft such as the Mirage 2000, F-15E, A-5 Vigilante, Sea Harrier, or FB-111 are or were tasked part or full time with land or sea-based strategic nuclear attack missions. An aerial refuelingAerial refuelingAerial refueling, also called air refueling, in-flight refueling , air-to-air refueling or tanking, is the process of transferring fuel from one aircraft to another during flight....
fleet supports intercontinental strategic operations both for heavy bombers and smaller aircraft; it also makes possible around the clock airborne standby of bombers and command aircraft making these airborne assets nearly impossible to eliminate in a first strike.
Tactical nuclear weapon
Tactical nuclear weapon
A tactical nuclear weapon refers to a nuclear weapon which is designed to be used on a battlefield in military situations. This is as opposed to strategic nuclear weapons which are designed to menace large populations, to damage the enemy's ability to wage war, or for general deterrence...
s are used in air, land and sea warfare. Air-to-air missiles and rockets, surface-to-air missiles, and small air-to-ground rockets, bombs, and precision munitions have been developed and deployed with nuclear warheads. Ground forces have included tactical nuclear artillery shells, surface-to-surface rockets, land mines, medium and small man-packable nuclear engineering demolition charges, even man-carried or vehicle-mounted recoilless rifles. Naval forces have carried nuclear-armed naval rocket-assisted and standard depth charges and torpedoes, and naval gunnery shells. Tactical nuclear weapons and the doctrine for their use is primarily for use in a non-strategic warfighting role destroying military forces in the battle area; they are not counted toward triad status.
Triad nuclear powers
The following nations are considered triad nuclear powers. They possess nuclear forces consisting of land-based missiles, ballistic or long-range cruise missile submarines, and strategic bombers or long-range tactical aircraft.- United StatesNuclear weapons and the United StatesThe United States was the first country to develop nuclear weapons, and is the only country to have used them in warfare, with the separate bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II. Before and during the Cold War it conducted over a thousand nuclear tests and developed many long-range...
The US operates Minuteman ICBMsLGM-30 MinutemanThe LGM-30 Minuteman is a U.S. nuclear missile, a land-based intercontinental ballistic missile . As of 2010, the version LGM-30G Minuteman-III is the only land-based ICBM in service in the United States...
from underground hardened silos, Trident SLBMs carried by Ohio class submarinesOhio class submarineThe Ohio class is a class of nuclear-powered submarines used by the United States Navy. The United States has 18 Ohio-class submarines:...
, it also operates B-1, B-52, B-2 strategic bombers, as well as land- and carrier-based tactical aircraft, some capable of carrying strategic and tactical B61B61 nuclear bombThe B61 nuclear bomb is the primary thermonuclear weapon in the U.S. Enduring Stockpile following the end of the Cold War. It is an intermediate yield strategic and tactical nuclear weapon featuring a two-stage radiation implosion design....
and large strategic B83B83 nuclear bombThe B83 nuclear weapon is a variable yield gravity bomb developed by the United States in the late 1970s, entering service in 1983. With a maximum yield of 1.2 megatons, it is currently the most powerful atomic weapon in the US arsenal...
gravity bombs, ALCM, and AGM-129 Advanced Cruise Missiles. While the US no longer keeps nuclear armed bombers on airborne alertOperation Chrome DomeOperation Chrome Dome was one of several United States Air Force Cold-War era airborne global alert duties or programs in which B-52 Stratofortress strategic bomber aircraft armed with thermonuclear weapons were assigned targets in the Soviet Union on schedules guaranteeing that a substantial...
it has the ability to do so along with the airborne nuclear command and control aircraft with its fleet of KC-10 and KC-135 aerial refueling planes. The US Navy also retains reserve stocks of undeployed nuclear warheads to equip existing Tomahawk ship or submarine-launched cruise missiles. Previous to development of submarine-launched ballistic missiles the US Navy strategic nuclear role was provided by aircraft carrier–based bombers and for a short time submarine-launched cruise missiles. With the end of the cold war, the US never deployed the rail mobile version of the Peacekeeper ICBM or the road mobile Midgetman small ICBMMGM-134 MidgetmanThe MGM-134A Midgetman, also known as the Small Intercontinental Ballistic Missile , was an intercontinental ballistic missile developed by the United States of America.-Overview:...
. The US destroyed its stock of road mobile Pershing II IRBMs and ground-launched cruise missiles in accordance with the INF treatyIntermediate-Range Nuclear Forces TreatyThe Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is a 1987 agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union. Signed in Washington, D.C. by U.S. President Ronald Reagan and General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev on December 8, 1987, it was ratified by the United States Senate on May 27, 1988 and...
.
- Russia Russia inherited the arsenal of all of the former Soviet states, it consists of silo-based as well as rail and road mobile ICBMs, sea-based SLBMs, strategic bombers, strategic aerial refueling aircraft, and long-range tactical aircraft capable of carrying gravity bombs, standoff missiles, and cruise missiles. The USSR destroyed its stock of IRBMs in accordance with the INF treatyIntermediate-Range Nuclear Forces TreatyThe Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is a 1987 agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union. Signed in Washington, D.C. by U.S. President Ronald Reagan and General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev on December 8, 1987, it was ratified by the United States Senate on May 27, 1988 and...
which Russia abides by.
Emerging triad nuclear powers
- People's Republic of China Unlike the US and Russia where strategic nuclear forces are enumerated by treaty limits and subject to verification, China, a nuclear power since 1964, is not subject to these requirements but may have a triad structure of some sort. China's nuclear force is much smaller than the US or Russia and is closer in number and capability to that of France or the UK. This force is mainly land-based missiles including ICBMs, IRBMs, and tactical ballistic missiles as well as cruise missiles. Unlike the US and Russia, China stores many of its missiles in huge underground tunnel complexes; US Representative Michael TurnerMike TurnerMichael R. Turner is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party.The district covers most of the city of Dayton and includes most of Montgomery County, much of Warren County, and is home to all of Highland and Clinton Counties.-Early life, education...
referring to 2009 Chinese media reports said “This network of tunnels could be in excess of 5,000 kilometers (3,110 miles), and is used to transport nuclear weapons and forces,”, the Chinese Army newsletter calls this tunnel system an underground Great Wall of ChinaGreat Wall of ChinaThe Great Wall of China is a series of stone and earthen fortifications in northern China, built originally to protect the northern borders of the Chinese Empire against intrusions by various nomadic groups...
. China has one inactive Type 092 submarine, after its twin was lost at sea and is working on several new Type 094 submarinesType 094 submarineThe Type 094 is a new class of ballistic missile submarine developed by the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy. The first-of-class was constructed at Huludao Shipyard in Huludao, Liaoning Province and launched in July 2004...
carrying SLBMs although the reliability of the new type is also in question in addition the single type 94 boat has not received its SLBM's. There is an aging bomber force consisting of Xian H-6sXian H-6The Xian H-6 is a license-built version of the Soviet Tupolev Tu-16 twin-engine jet bomber, built for the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force....
with an unclear nuclear delivery role as well as several tactical aircraft types that could be equipped with nuclear weapons.
- IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
—India maintains a "no first useNo first useNo first use refers to a pledge or a policy by a nuclear power not to use nuclear weapons as a means of warfare unless first attacked by an adversary using nuclear weapons...
" nuclear policy and is developing a nuclear triad capability as a part of its "minimum credible deterrenceMinimum Credible DeterrenceCredible Minimum Deterrence is the principle on which India's nuclear doctrine is based.It underlines no first use with a second strike capability, and falls under minimal deterrence as opposed to mutually assured destruction...
" doctrine. India's nuclear-weapons programIndia and weapons of mass destructionIndia possesses nuclear weapons and maintains short- and intermediate-range ballistic missiles, nuclear-capable aircraft, surface ships, and submarines under development as possible delivery systems and platforms...
possesses surface-to-surface missiles such as the Agni II and Agni III, surface-to-air missiles like the Akash and supersonic cruise missiles like the BrahMosBrahMosBrahMos is a stealth supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft or land. It is a joint venture between Republic of India's Defence Research and Development Organisation and Russian Federation's NPO Mashinostroeyenia who have together formed BrahMos Aerospace...
. Indian state-owned defense contractor, DRDO, is also working on a submarine-launched ballistic missile version of the Agni-III missile, known as the Agni-III SL. This missile is expected to provide India with a credible sea-based second-strike capability. According to Indian defense sources, Agni-III SL will have a range of 3,500 km. In addition, the 5,000 km range Agni-V ICBM is expected to be tested by 2010-11. India has nuclear-capable fighter aircraft such as the Dassault Mirage 2000H, Sukhoi Su-30 MKI (a variant of the Su-30MK and comparable to Sukhoi Su-35), MIG-29, and the indigenously built HAL TejasHAL TejasThe HAL Tejas is a lightweight multirole fighter developed by India. It is a tailless, compound delta-wing design powered by a single engine. It came from the Light Combat Aircraft programme, which began in the 1980s to replace India's ageing MiG-21 fighters...
. India is very close to completing a nuclear triad with the induction of the Arihant class submarine by 2012. The submarine was officially launched on 26 July 2009.
- PakistanPakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
— The Pakistan Air Force (PAF)Pakistan Air ForceThe Pakistan Air Force is the leading air arm of the Pakistan Armed Forces and is primarily tasked with the aerial defence of Pakistan with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and the Pakistan Navy. The PAF also has a tertiary role of providing strategic air transport...
is believed to have practiced "toss-bombingToss bombingToss bombing is a method of bombing where the attacking aircraft pulls upwards when releasing its bomb load, giving the bomb additional time of flight by starting its ballistic path with an upward vector.The purpose of toss bombing is to compensate for the gravity drop of the...
" in the 1980s and 1990s, a method of launching weapons from fighter-bombers which can also be used to deliver nuclear warheads. The PAF has two units (No. 16 Black PanthersNo. 16 Squadron (Pakistan Air Force)No. 16 Squadron, named the Black Panthers, is a Pakistan Air Force fighter squadron.-History:The squadron was established in 1957, equipped with the F-86F Sabre, commanded by Squadron Leader Imam-ul-Haq Khan and assigned the role of Tactical Attack...
and No. 26 Black SpidersNo. 26 Squadron (Pakistan Air Force)No. 26 Squadron, named the Black Spiders, is a Pakistan Air Force fighter squadron.-History:The squadron was established at PAF Base Masroor on 30 August 1967, equipped with the F-86 Sabre, commanded by Wing Commander Rehmat Khan and assigned the role of operational training of pilots on the F-86....
) operating around 50 of the Chinese-built Nanchang A-5CNanchang Q-5The Nanchang Q-5 , also known as the A-5 in its export versions, is a Chinese-built jet ground-attack aircraft based on the Soviet MiG-19. Its main role is close air support.-Design and development:...
, believed to be the preferred vehicle for delivery of nuclear weapons due to its long range. These units are major part of the Air Force Strategic CommandAir Force Strategic Command (Pakistan)The Pakistan Air Force Strategic Forces Command, known as AF Strategic Command, is one of the three unified command of the Pakistan Strategic Forces Command...
, a command responsible for battling the weapons of mass destruction. The others are various variants of the Mirage-IIIDassault Mirage IIIThe Mirage III is a supersonic fighter aircraft designed by Dassault Aviation during the late 1950s, and manufactured both in France and a number of other countries. It was a successful fighter aircraft, being sold to many air forces around the world and remaining in production for over a decade...
and Mirage-VDassault Mirage 5The Dassault Mirage 5 is a supersonic attack aircraft designed in France by Dassault Aviation during the 1960s, and manufactured in France and a number of other countries. It was derived from Dassault's popular Mirage III fighter, and spawned several variants of its own.-Early development:The...
, of which around 156 are currently operated by the PAFPakistan Air ForceThe Pakistan Air Force is the leading air arm of the Pakistan Armed Forces and is primarily tasked with the aerial defence of Pakistan with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and the Pakistan Navy. The PAF also has a tertiary role of providing strategic air transport...
. The PAF also operates some 63 F-16F-16 Fighting FalconThe General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a multirole jet fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force . Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful all-weather multirole aircraft. Over 4,400 aircraft have been built since...
fighters, the first 32 of which were delivered in the 1980s and believed by some to have been modified for nuclear weapons delivery.It has also been reported that an air-launched cruise missileCruise missileA cruise missile is a guided missile that carries an explosive payload and is propelled, usually by a jet engine, towards a land-based or sea-based target. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large warhead over long distances with high accuracy...
(ALCM) with a range of 350 km has been developed by Pakistan, designated Hatf 8 and named Ra'ad ALCM, which may theoretically be armed with a nuclear warhead. It was reported to have been test-fired by a Mirage IIIDassault Mirage IIIThe Mirage III is a supersonic fighter aircraft designed by Dassault Aviation during the late 1950s, and manufactured both in France and a number of other countries. It was a successful fighter aircraft, being sold to many air forces around the world and remaining in production for over a decade...
fighter and, according to one Western official, is believed to be capable of penetrating some air defence/missile defence systems.The Pakistan NavyPakistan NavyThe Pakistan Navy is the naval warfare/service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. Pakistan's Navy is responsible for Pakistan's coastline along the Arabian Sea and the defense of important civilian harbors and military bases...
was first publicly reported to be considering deployment of nuclear weapons on submarines in February 2001. Later in 2003 it was stated by Admiral Shahid Karimullah, then Chief of Naval StaffChief of Naval Staff (Pakistan)The Chief of the Naval Staff, abbreviated as CNS, is the highest ranking officer in the Pakistani Navy unless a 4-star naval officer is appointed as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee. The current Chief of the Naval Staff is Admiral Asif Sandila who commands the Navy. The CNS reports...
, that there were no plans for deploying nuclear weaponNuclear weaponA nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission bomb test released the same amount...
s on submarines but if "forced to" they would be. In 2004, Pakistan Navy established the Naval Strategic Forces CommandNaval Strategic Forces Command (Pakistan)The Pakistan Naval Strategic Forces Command , known as PNSFC, is a one of the three major unified command of the Pakistan Armed Forces responsible for the defence and protection of naval and naval-nuclear assets in the country...
and made it responsible for countering and battling naval-based weapons of mass destruction. It is believed by most experts that Pakistan is developing a sea-based variant of the Hatf VII Babur, which is a nuclear-capable ground-launched cruise missile. With a dangerous stockpile of plutonium, Pakistan might be able to produce a variety of miniature nuclear warheads which would allow it to nuclear-tip the C-802C-802The Yingji-82 or YJ-82 is a Chinese anti-ship missile first unveiled in 1989 by the China Haiying Electro-Mechanical Technology Academy , also known as the Third Academy...
and C-803C-803The Yingji-83 or YJ-83 is a Chinese anti-ship missile based on the YJ-82, designed as a supersonic successor to the subsonic YJ-82 missile. The export designation is C-803.-Development and design:...
anti-ship missiles as well as being able to develop nuclear torpedoes, nuclear depth bombNuclear Depth BombA Nuclear Depth Bomb is the nuclear equivalent of the conventional depth charge and can be used in Anti-Submarine Warfare for attacking submerged submarines...
s and nuclear naval minesNaval mineA naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...
.
Non-triad nuclear powers
- FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
—A former triad power, the Force de frappeForce de frappeThe Force de Frappe is the designation of what used to be a triad of air-, sea- and land-based nuclear weapons intended for dissuasion, and consequential deterrence...
possesses sea-based and air-based nuclear forces through the Triomphant class ballistic missile submarines deployed with M45 intercontinental SLBMs armed with multiple warheads, and nuclear capable Dassault Mirage 2000N fighter aircraft which replaced the long-range Dassault Mirage IVDassault Mirage IVThe Dassault Mirage IV was a French jet-propelled supersonic strategic bomber and deep-reconnaissance aircraft. For many years it was a vital part of the nuclear triad of the Force de Frappe, France's nuclear deterrent striking force.-Development:...
supersonic nuclear bomber. France had S2 and S3S3 (missile)The S3 was a French land-based Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile, equipped with a single 1.2-megatonne thermonuclear warhead.- Design :The S3 is a two-stage, solid-propelland Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile. The first stage was inherited from the S2, with a P16 solid fuel engine and 4...
land-based IRBMs, the S3 with a 3,500 km range, but these have been phased out of service since the dissolution of the USSR. France operates aircraft with a nuclear strike role from its aircraft carrier. - United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
—Possesses sea-based nuclear forcesNuclear weapons and the United KingdomThe United Kingdom was the third country to test an independently developed nuclear weapon, in October 1952. It is one of the five "Nuclear Weapons States" under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which the UK ratified in 1968...
through its Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
Vanguard classVanguard class submarineThe Vanguard class are the Royal Navy's current nuclear ballistic missile submarines , each armed with up to 16 Trident II Submarine-launched ballistic missiles...
ballistic missile submarines, deployed with Trident II intercontinental SLBMs armed with multiple warheads. The Royal Air ForceRoyal Air ForceThe Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
operated V-bomber strategic bombers throughout the Cold WarCold WarThe Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. The planned UK silo-based IRBM, the Blue Streak missile, was canceled as it was not seen as a credible deterrent, considering the population density of areas in the UK geologically suited for missile silos. The tactical Corporal surface-to-surface missileMGM-5 CorporalThe MGM-5 Corporal missile was the first guided weapon authorized by the United States to carry a nuclear warhead.The first nuclear-authorized unguided rocket was the MGR-1 Honest John...
was operated by the British Army. The intermediate Thor missile was operated briefly by the RAF. Previously having a nuclear strike mission for carrier-based Buccaneer attack aircraft and later Sea Harriers, the UK no longer deploys nuclear weapons for delivery by carrier-based naval aircraft or any other means other than the Vanguard submarine-launched Trident SLBM. - North Korea (DPRK)—North Korea has claimed to have indigenous nuclear weapons technologyNorth Korea and weapons of mass destructionNorth Korea has declared that it has nuclear weapons and is believed by many to have nuclear weapons. The CIA assesses that North Korea also has a substantial arsenal of chemical weapons...
since a large underground explosion was detected in 2006. The DPRK has both aircraft and missiles which may be tasked to deliver nuclear weapons. The North Korean missile program is largely based on domestically produced variants of the Soviet ScudScudScud is a series of tactical ballistic missiles developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War, and exported widely to other countries. The term comes from the NATO reporting name SS-1 Scud which was attached to the missile by Western intelligence agencies...
missile, some of which are sufficiently powerful to attempt satellite launch. The DPRK also has short-range ballistic missiles and cruise missiles. Western researchers believe the current generation of the DPRK's suspected nuclear weapons are too large to be fitted to the country's existing missile stock. - South AfricaSouth AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
—From the 1970s through the end of white minority rule, South Africa developed and deployed a small number of atomic weapons (perhaps up to six devices). These were intended to be delivered by the RSA's Canberra bomber force. South Africa also developed advanced ballistic missiles and a satellite launch vehicle which could have carried nuclear warheads. Before majority rule was introduced the RSA gave up its nuclear weapons.
Suspected triad nuclear powers
- IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
—Israel has been reported in congressional testimony by the US Department of Defense of having aircraft-delivered nuclear weapons as early as the mid 1960s, and a demonstrated missile-based force since the mid 1960s, an IRBM in the mid 1980s, and an ICBM in the late 2000s, the suspected second-strike capability arrived with the Dolphin class submarineDolphin class submarineThe Type 800 Dolphin class is a diesel-electric submarine developed and constructed by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft AG , Germany for the Israeli Navy. It is based on the export-only German 209 class submarines, but modified and reduced and is thus not seen as a member of the 209 family...
and Popeye TurboAGM-142 Have NapThe Popeye is an air to ground missile developed and in use by Israel, of which several types have been developed for Israeli and export users. A substantially modified long range cruise missile variant of the Popeye Turbo is believed to be used to arm the Israeli submarine based nuclear forces...
submarine-launched cruise missile. Israel's alleged nuclear weapons programNuclear weapons and IsraelIsrael is widely believed to be the sixth country in the world to have developed nuclear weapons and to be one of four nuclear-armed countries not recognized as a Nuclear Weapons State by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty , the others being India, Pakistan and North Korea...
Israel is suspected of using their inventory of nuclear-capable fighter aircraft such as the long-range F-15E Strike EagleF-15E Strike EagleThe McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle is an all-weather multirole fighter, derived from the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. The F-15E was designed in the 1980s for long-range, high speed interdiction without relying on escort or electronic warfare aircraft. United States Air Force F-15E Strike...
, F-16, and formerly the F-4 Phantom, Dassault Mirage IIIDassault Mirage IIIThe Mirage III is a supersonic fighter aircraft designed by Dassault Aviation during the late 1950s, and manufactured both in France and a number of other countries. It was a successful fighter aircraft, being sold to many air forces around the world and remaining in production for over a decade...
, A-4 Skyhawk, and NesherIAI NesherThe Israel Aircraft Industries Nesher is the Israeli version of the Dassault Mirage 5 multi-role fighter aircraft...
. Israel has several long-range tanker aircraft and aerial refueling capacity on many of its long-range fighter-bomber aircraft, this capacity was used in the 1985 long-range conventional strikeOperation Wooden LegOperation Wooden Leg was an attack by Israel on the Palestine Liberation Organization headquarters in Hammam al-Shatt, Tunisia, 12 miles from the capital of Tunis. It took place on October 1, 1985. Taking place 1,280 miles away, this was the furthest operation from Israel undertaken by the...
against the PLO in Tunisia. Jane's Defence WeeklyJane's Defence WeeklyJane's Defence Weekly is a weekly magazine reporting on military and corporate affairs, edited by Peter Felstead. It is one of a number of military-related publications named after John F. T. Jane, an Englishman who first published Jane's All the World's Fighting Ships in 1898...
reports that the Israeli Dolphin class submarines are widely believed to be nuclear armedNuclear weapons and IsraelIsrael is widely believed to be the sixth country in the world to have developed nuclear weapons and to be one of four nuclear-armed countries not recognized as a Nuclear Weapons State by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty , the others being India, Pakistan and North Korea...
, offering Israel a second-strikeSecond strikeIn nuclear strategy, a second strike capability is a country's assured ability to respond to a nuclear attack with powerful nuclear retaliation against the attacker...
capability with a demonstrated range as long as 1500 km in a 2002 test. According to an official report which was submitted to the American congress in 2004, it may be that with a payload of 1,000 kg the Jericho 3 gives Israel nuclear strike capabilities within the entire Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia and almost all parts of North AmericaNorth AmericaNorth America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, as well as within large parts of South AmericaSouth AmericaSouth America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
and North OceaniaOceaniaOceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
, Israel also has the regional reach of its Jericho 2 IRBM force. The existence of a nuclear force at all is hinted at often blatantly, evidence of an advanced weapons program including miniaturized and thermonuclear devices has been presented, especially the extensive photographic evidence given by former Israeli nuclear weapons assembler Mordechai Vanunu. There have been incidents where Israel has been suspected of testing, but so far Israel for diplomatic reasons and international pressure has not openly admitted to having operational nuclear weapons, and so is only a suspect triad state.
Other nuclear delivery systems
There is nothing in nuclear strategy to mandate only these three delivery systems. For example, orbital weapons or spacecraft for purposes of orbital bombardment using nuclear devices have been developed and silo deployed by the USSR from 1969 to 1983, these would not fit into the categories listed above. However, actual space-based weapon systems used for weapons of mass destruction have been banned under the Outer Space TreatyOuter Space Treaty
The Outer Space Treaty, formally the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, is a treaty that forms the basis of international space law...
and launch ready deployment for the US and former USSR by the SALT II treaty. Another example is the US, UK, and France do or have previously included a strategic nuclear strike mission for carrier-based aircraft, which especially in the past were far harder to track and target with ICBMs or strategic nuclear bombers than fixed bomber or missile bases, permitting some second-strike flexibility; this was the first sea-based deterrent before the SLBM. The US and UK jointly explored an air-launched strategic ballistic nuclear missile, the Skybolt, but canceled the program in favor of submarine-based missiles. In 1974 a Lockheed C-5 Galaxy successfully tested an air launch of a Minuteman
LGM-30 Minuteman
The LGM-30 Minuteman is a U.S. nuclear missile, a land-based intercontinental ballistic missile . As of 2010, the version LGM-30G Minuteman-III is the only land-based ICBM in service in the United States...
ICBM; this system was not deployed, but was used as a bargaining point in the SALT treaty negotiations with the USSR.