Operation Steel Box
Encyclopedia
Operation Steel Box, also known as Operation Golden Python, was a 1990 joint U.S.-West German operation which moved 100,000 U.S. chemical weapons from Germany to Johnston Atoll
.
, West Germany
100,000 GB
and VX filled American chemical munitions were stored. The weapons in this depot were scheduled to be moved due to an agreement between the U.S. and West Germany. The 1986 agreement, between Ronald Reagan
and Helmut Kohl
, provided for the removal of 155 mm and 8 inch unitary chemical projectiles.
utilized trucks and trains, civilian contractors, and U.S. and West German military personnel. The weapons were repacked and shipped by truck from their storage facility until they reached the railway in Miesau. The truck transport portion of the mission involved 28 road convoys which delivered the munitions the 30 miles from Clausen to Miesau.
The munitions were carried by special ammunition train
from Miesau to the port of Nordenham
. The train transport was well publicized and escorted by 80 U.S. and West German military and police vehicles. At the port the munitions were loaded onto two modified ships, the SS Gopher State
and the SS Flickertail State
, by the Army's Technical Escort Unit. The ships were operated by the U.S. Military Sealift Command, and upon leaving Nordenham they sailed for 46 straight days. The ships arrived at Johnston Atoll and on November 18 unloaded the last of their cargo containers.
and USS Truxtun CGN-35. The transport ships avoided the Panama Canal
, for security reasons, and took the route around Cape Horn
, the tip of South America. There were no reported chemical agent leaks or security breaches during the transport phase of Steel Box.
, the island nations of the South Pacific indicated that their concern was that the South Pacific would become a toxic waste dumping ground. Other concerns raised included the security of the shipments, which were refueled at sea and escorted by U.S. guided missile destroyers, while they were en route to Johnston Atoll. In Australia, Prime Minister Bob Hawke
drew criticism from some of these island nations
for his support of the chemical weapons destruction at Johnston Atoll.
Johnston Atoll
Johnston Atoll is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean about west of Hawaii. There are four islands located on the coral reef platform, two natural islands, Johnston Island and Sand Island, which have been expanded by coral dredging, as well as North Island and East Island , an additional two...
.
Background
At a U.S. Army depot near ClausenClausen, Germany
Clausen is a municipality in Südwestpfalz district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, western Germany....
, West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
100,000 GB
Sarin
Sarin, or GB, is an organophosphorus compound with the formula [2CHO]CH3PF. It is a colorless, odorless liquid, which is used as a chemical weapon. It has been classified as a weapon of mass destruction in UN Resolution 687...
and VX filled American chemical munitions were stored. The weapons in this depot were scheduled to be moved due to an agreement between the U.S. and West Germany. The 1986 agreement, between Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
and Helmut Kohl
Helmut Kohl
Helmut Josef Michael Kohl is a German conservative politician and statesman. He was Chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1998 and the chairman of the Christian Democratic Union from 1973 to 1998...
, provided for the removal of 155 mm and 8 inch unitary chemical projectiles.
Operation
Operation Steel Box began on July 26, 1990 and ended on September 22, 1990, but the weapons did not reach their final destination until November. The move from the storage facility to an intermediate facility at MiesauBruchmühlbach-Miesau
Bruchmühlbach-Miesau is a municipality in the district of Kaiserslautern in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the small river Glan, approx. 10 km north-east of Homburg, and 25 km west of Kaiserslautern. It has many festivals and is the home of two storks which are the...
utilized trucks and trains, civilian contractors, and U.S. and West German military personnel. The weapons were repacked and shipped by truck from their storage facility until they reached the railway in Miesau. The truck transport portion of the mission involved 28 road convoys which delivered the munitions the 30 miles from Clausen to Miesau.
The munitions were carried by special ammunition train
Ammunition train
The ammunition train was an element of armies in 19th and 20th century warfare. They were responsible for transporting the artillery and infantry ammunition of each division from the ammunition refilling point to the area of engagement. The train itself may have been a literal train, but in most...
from Miesau to the port of Nordenham
Nordenham
Nordenham is a town in the Wesermarsch district, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located at the mouth of the Weser river on the Butjadingen peninsula on the coast of the North Sea. The seaport city of Bremerhaven is located on the other side of the river...
. The train transport was well publicized and escorted by 80 U.S. and West German military and police vehicles. At the port the munitions were loaded onto two modified ships, the SS Gopher State
SS Gopher State (T-ACS-4)
The SS Gopher State was laid down on 26 July 1971, at Bath Iron Works, Bath, ME. as SS Export Leader, a Maritime Administration type hull under Maritime Administration contract . She was launched on 8 July 1972 and delivered to the Maritime Administration, 22 January 1973...
and the SS Flickertail State
SS Flickertail State (T-ACS-5)
SS Flickertail State is a crane ship in ready reserve for the United States Navy. She is stationed at Newport News, Virginia and is in ready reserve under the Military Sealift Command. The ship was named for the state of North Dakota, which is also known as the Flickertail State.The ship was...
, by the Army's Technical Escort Unit. The ships were operated by the U.S. Military Sealift Command, and upon leaving Nordenham they sailed for 46 straight days. The ships arrived at Johnston Atoll and on November 18 unloaded the last of their cargo containers.
Security and emergency response
Security and emergency response were both concerns during Steel Box. Besides the police and military escort for the trains, the road convoys had restricted airspace overhead. Along the route, emergency response teams were on stand-by. While the ships were inport U.S. Navy EOD Detachments provided underwater hull sweeps to insure limpet mines were not attached to the ships. The 46 day trip at sea was non-stop, with refueling taking place along the route. The ships were also escorted by the U.S. Navy guided missile cruiser USS Bainbridge CGN-25USS Bainbridge (CGN-25)
USS Bainbridge was the only ship of her class. Initially a guided missile destroyer leader in the United States Navy, she was re-designated as a guided missile cruiser in 1975. This ship was nuclear-powered.-Construction:...
and USS Truxtun CGN-35. The transport ships avoided the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
, for security reasons, and took the route around Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
, the tip of South America. There were no reported chemical agent leaks or security breaches during the transport phase of Steel Box.
International reaction
The 1990 shipments of nerve agents from Germany to JACADS caused several South Pacific nations to express unease. At the 1990 South Pacific Forum in VanuatuVanuatu
Vanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
, the island nations of the South Pacific indicated that their concern was that the South Pacific would become a toxic waste dumping ground. Other concerns raised included the security of the shipments, which were refueled at sea and escorted by U.S. guided missile destroyers, while they were en route to Johnston Atoll. In Australia, Prime Minister Bob Hawke
Bob Hawke
Robert James Lee "Bob" Hawke AC GCL was the 23rd Prime Minister of Australia from March 1983 to December 1991 and therefore longest serving Australian Labor Party Prime Minister....
drew criticism from some of these island nations
Oceania
Oceania 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...
for his support of the chemical weapons destruction at Johnston Atoll.
See also
- Human experimentation in the United StatesHuman experimentation in the United StatesThere have been numerous experiments performed on human test subjects in the United States that have been considered unethical, and were often performed illegally, without the knowledge, consent, or informed consent of the test subjects....
- Johnston Atoll Chemical Agent Disposal SystemJohnston Atoll Chemical Agent Disposal SystemJohnston Atoll Chemical Agent Disposal System was the U.S. Army's first chemical munitions disposal facility. It was located on Johnston Island, at Johnston Atoll and completed its mission and ceased operation in 2000.-Background:...