Photo Gallery
Rascal awaiting display in the rocket garden
Rascal in the rocket garden
Overview
Display location:
- Hangar C, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
Type: Air-to-ground guided missile
Designation: GAM-63
Serial Number: 53-8203
Payload: Nuclear warhead
Agency: U.S. Air Force
Contractor: Bell Aerosystems Company
History
Rascal, officially designated GAM-63, was a liquid-propelled air-to-surface rocket missile tested a Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico.
The mission of the Rascal was to permit bombers to stand off from their targets when delivering nuclear weapons in order to avoid lethal combinations of defending interceptors and anti-aircraft missiles in the target area. The first launch of a Rascal missile occurred in October 1953.
The Bell Aircraft company developed the Rascal missile. It utilized a three-chambered Bell liquid-propellant rocket engine which could accelerate the missile to speeds of approximately Mach 1.5.
The Rascal on display was one of the earliest rockets to arrive at the museum in 1966. It spent many years in the Rocket Garden before removal for a major restoration.
Other Missile & Rocket Artifacts