Sprint Missile

Sprint Missile. . Although never formally given an identifying nomenclature, the Sprint missile was a significant piece of US Army anti-ballistic missile technology and an integral part of the Sentinel and Safeguard ABM systems. The Sprint was a two-stage surface-to-air missile armed with a W66 low-yield enhanced radiation warhead, designed to destroy any incoming ICBMs that Spartan may have missed. Like its larger counterpart, the Sprint was launched from an underground silo and was radio command guided. , When Sprint launched, the silo door was blown off with explosive bolts and a massive gas piston pushed the missile upwards out of the silo. Once clear, the missile's rocket motor kicked in. Sprint's most remarkable feature was its speed; accelerating from zero to Mach 10, or 7600mph in four seconds. The missile's first stage burned for 1.2 seconds and the second for just slightly longer, intercepting the incoming warhead within 10-15 seconds from launch. With a range of just over 25 miles, the Sprint was truly a last-ditch weapon to defeat incoming ICBM warheads targeting American missile silos. , Length: - 32 ft 9 in - 9.98 m , Wingspan: - 12 ft - 3.66 m , Weight: - 8,000 lb - 3,500 kg , Speed: - Mach 4.31 , Range: - 25 mi - 40 km , Ceiling: - 19 mi - 30 km , Warhead: - W66 enhanced radiation nuclear warhead