Silverleaf
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A month or so ago, I had found a page online in regards to the possibility that Sandia National Laboratories had proposed a Nike-Sandhawk combination, amongst their original design for the Sandhawk, Terrier- Sandhawk, and Dart-Sandhawk.
https://www.goerigk-jever.de/javelin.htm
So after a discussion over at Scaleroc with Pete Alway, he mentioned that my best bet would be contact Sandia and see if I could get any official information from them on such a design. He personally had never heard of any such proposal, but did state it was "possible".
I emailed the company immediately - including the above link - asking them if they had any information on such a design combo and whether it was ever flown. I thought that like most email attempts for data and info, my query had fallen on death ears, or had landed on the desk of someone who didn't want to help. A month had passed with no contact, and I was going to write them a letter via snailmail to see if I could muster a response.
Yesterday I recieved the following email from a Richard G. Hay, whom is the Manager of Sandia National Laboratorie's Range Integration & Laboratory Support Department
*****
This is in response to your request for information on the Nike-Sandhawk rocket system.
I was able to find a proposal dated March 30, 1967 that indicates that Sandia was seriously considering building and flying a Nike-Sandhawk but in checking both written records and in conversations with people who were active in the rocket program in the Sandhawk era I was unable to find evidence that such a system was actually flown.
Sandia did fly single stage Sandhawk, Sandhawk-Dart, Sandhawk-Tomahawk, Terrier-Sandhawk-9, Terrier-Sandhawk-13, and Terrier-Sandhawk-17 (where the number is the payload diameter in inches).
I suspect that the availability of the Terrier system preempted the need to develop the Nike boosted system.
I'm told by the aerodynamics engineers that were around in that era that they were worried about the large Sandhawk fins reducing the stability of the system if the usual 2.5 sq-ft Nike fins were employed.
Our files show the last Sandhawk system flown by Sandia was a Terrier-Sandhawk flown on September 12, 1977. It was an ionospheric modification experiment flown for Los Alamos Scientific Laboratories named "Lagopedo Dos" from Sandia's Kauai Test Facility.
I suspect that the availability of the Malemute motor with similiar characteristics contributed to the end of Sandhawk usage. I think that as of the beginning of this year there were still two Sandhawk motors in Sandia's motor inventory.
I looked for a Sandhawk system photo and found the one attached. It's a Terrier-Sandhawk that was flown from Kauai Test Facility Pad 12 on May 14, 1976.
This was an X-ray experiment.
I have also attached a scanned version of the development proposal for the Sandhawk systems. The Nitehawk system mentioned is a Nike-Tomahawk.
I hope this answers the question about the Nike-Sandhawk.
Dick
Richard G. Hay
Manager - Range Integration & Laboratory Support Department
Sandia National Laboratories MS-1185
P.O. Box 5800
Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185-1185
*****
So, while the "official" word from Sandia is that a Nike-Sandhawk was never built or flown, we do have the drawing available for a scale design based off of the original proposal.
I've uploaded the image to:
https://members.tripod.com/silverleaf_design/id57.htm#sd
I've tried unsuccessfully to upload the Sandia .pdf document in zip formatting, but Tripod is being APITA at the moment. If your interested in this document, please let me know, and I can send you a copy via email.
If someone would be interested in hosting this data for the long term, I'd certainly appreciate it.
Details follow:
The 2.8 meg Sandia Corporation .pdf Document from March 30, 1967 that is the original proposal for the following 4 designs:
Sandhawk
Sandhawk-Dart
Nike-Sandhawk
Terrier- Sandhawk
It details the objectives that Sandia had set forth for this family of rockets, and in addition, it has a hand drawn sketch for each of the 4 proposed systems with station numbers.
Cheers,
https://www.goerigk-jever.de/javelin.htm
So after a discussion over at Scaleroc with Pete Alway, he mentioned that my best bet would be contact Sandia and see if I could get any official information from them on such a design. He personally had never heard of any such proposal, but did state it was "possible".
I emailed the company immediately - including the above link - asking them if they had any information on such a design combo and whether it was ever flown. I thought that like most email attempts for data and info, my query had fallen on death ears, or had landed on the desk of someone who didn't want to help. A month had passed with no contact, and I was going to write them a letter via snailmail to see if I could muster a response.
Yesterday I recieved the following email from a Richard G. Hay, whom is the Manager of Sandia National Laboratorie's Range Integration & Laboratory Support Department
*****
This is in response to your request for information on the Nike-Sandhawk rocket system.
I was able to find a proposal dated March 30, 1967 that indicates that Sandia was seriously considering building and flying a Nike-Sandhawk but in checking both written records and in conversations with people who were active in the rocket program in the Sandhawk era I was unable to find evidence that such a system was actually flown.
Sandia did fly single stage Sandhawk, Sandhawk-Dart, Sandhawk-Tomahawk, Terrier-Sandhawk-9, Terrier-Sandhawk-13, and Terrier-Sandhawk-17 (where the number is the payload diameter in inches).
I suspect that the availability of the Terrier system preempted the need to develop the Nike boosted system.
I'm told by the aerodynamics engineers that were around in that era that they were worried about the large Sandhawk fins reducing the stability of the system if the usual 2.5 sq-ft Nike fins were employed.
Our files show the last Sandhawk system flown by Sandia was a Terrier-Sandhawk flown on September 12, 1977. It was an ionospheric modification experiment flown for Los Alamos Scientific Laboratories named "Lagopedo Dos" from Sandia's Kauai Test Facility.
I suspect that the availability of the Malemute motor with similiar characteristics contributed to the end of Sandhawk usage. I think that as of the beginning of this year there were still two Sandhawk motors in Sandia's motor inventory.
I looked for a Sandhawk system photo and found the one attached. It's a Terrier-Sandhawk that was flown from Kauai Test Facility Pad 12 on May 14, 1976.
This was an X-ray experiment.
I have also attached a scanned version of the development proposal for the Sandhawk systems. The Nitehawk system mentioned is a Nike-Tomahawk.
I hope this answers the question about the Nike-Sandhawk.
Dick
Richard G. Hay
Manager - Range Integration & Laboratory Support Department
Sandia National Laboratories MS-1185
P.O. Box 5800
Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185-1185
*****
So, while the "official" word from Sandia is that a Nike-Sandhawk was never built or flown, we do have the drawing available for a scale design based off of the original proposal.
I've uploaded the image to:
https://members.tripod.com/silverleaf_design/id57.htm#sd
I've tried unsuccessfully to upload the Sandia .pdf document in zip formatting, but Tripod is being APITA at the moment. If your interested in this document, please let me know, and I can send you a copy via email.
If someone would be interested in hosting this data for the long term, I'd certainly appreciate it.
Details follow:
The 2.8 meg Sandia Corporation .pdf Document from March 30, 1967 that is the original proposal for the following 4 designs:
Sandhawk
Sandhawk-Dart
Nike-Sandhawk
Terrier- Sandhawk
It details the objectives that Sandia had set forth for this family of rockets, and in addition, it has a hand drawn sketch for each of the 4 proposed systems with station numbers.
Cheers,