General Dynamics BGM-109G Gryphon (Tomahawk)
The success of the US Navy's BGM-109A Tomahawk program led the USAF to become interested in a ground-launched version--both the US Army and the USAF had lacked a true ground-launched cruise missile (GLCM) since the retirement of the Mace in the early 1970s. The Tomahawk's small size and mobility made it tailor-made to the GLCM role, and would give the United States a counter to the new and accurate Soviet SS-20 intermediate-range ballistic missile.
As the Navy had already proven the Tomahawk system, testing the BGM-109G did not take long--the main issue was developing ground vehicles, such as mobile transporter-erector launchers (TELs) and launch control centers (LCCs), plus support vehicles. Flight tests were successful, and training began with the 868th Tactical Missile Training Group at Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona in 1981. Deployment began in 1983, and eventually there would be six operational wings, with the most famous being the 501st Tactical Missile Group at RAF Greenham Common, UK; two wings were based in Britain, with the others in West Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands. To differentiate the ground-based BGM-109G from the sea-based BGM-109A, the USAF renamed the missile Gryphon, though this was rarely used--it was either referred to as a Tomahawk, or as a "Glick-Em" (the phonetic reading of GLCM), or simply "cruises."
The arrival of the BGM-109G was seen as a deadly threat by the Soviet Union. The Gryphon had a very long range of 1730 miles, making it capable of hitting targets within the Soviet Union itself, and though it was comparatively slow compared to ballistic missiles, it was small and hard to intercept, especially if fired in large numbers that thinned out Soviet air defenses. Moreover, unlike the Tomahawk, the Gryphon was only armed with a nuclear warhead, the W84 variable yield, which could be adjusted anywhere from 0.2 kiloton (less destructive than some conventional bombs) to 150 kilotons.
A nightmare scenario for the Soviets was a cloud of BGM-109Gs destroying Soviet SAM networks across Eastern Europe, followed by a barrage of Pershing II IRBMs, which were extremely accurate, against Soviet command and political targets, or SS-20 sites before they were fired. Though the Gryphones were kept at their bases, if there was a threat of war, they would be rapidly dispersed, making them even harder to intercept. The only prevention might be a preemptive strike with SS-20s or SLBMs before the Gryphons were dispersed. As this potentially increased the danger of nuclear war, the deployment of the GLCMs met with outrage from many Europeans, especially British citizens around Greenham Common, who famously and vehemently protested the presence of the missiles. (Some of these protests were secretly funded by the USSR itself, hoping that the GLCMs would be withdrawn under public pressure.)
In the end, the scenario never took place. The deployment of the Gryphon and the Pershing II actually ended up bringing the Soviet Union to the negotiating table, leading to the INF Treaty of 1988. In return for the deactivation of the SS-20 and all other Soviet IRBMs, the United States agreed to withdraw both the BGM-109Gs and the Pershing IIs. Withdrawal began in 1988 and was complete by the time the Soviet Union fell apart in 1991. All but eight BGM-109Gs were dismantled, the rest saved for museums. As it turned out, the "cruises" had ended up helping end the Cold War peacefully, rather than turning it hot.
This Gryphon is one of the remaining eight, on display at the Pima Air and Space Museum. It never left the United States and was never launched, serving instead as a maintenance trainer with the 868th TMTG at Davis-Monthan. It was donated to the museum in the 1990s. I had photographed it back in 2019, then decided not to post it, but since I have been posting missiles lately, got another picture in June 2022, under an appropriately stormy sky.
General Dynamics BGM-109G Gryphon (Tomahawk)
The success of the US Navy's BGM-109A Tomahawk program led the USAF to become interested in a ground-launched version--both the US Army and the USAF had lacked a true ground-launched cruise missile (GLCM) since the retirement of the Mace in the early 1970s. The Tomahawk's small size and mobility made it tailor-made to the GLCM role, and would give the United States a counter to the new and accurate Soviet SS-20 intermediate-range ballistic missile.
As the Navy had already proven the Tomahawk system, testing the BGM-109G did not take long--the main issue was developing ground vehicles, such as mobile transporter-erector launchers (TELs) and launch control centers (LCCs), plus support vehicles. Flight tests were successful, and training began with the 868th Tactical Missile Training Group at Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona in 1981. Deployment began in 1983, and eventually there would be six operational wings, with the most famous being the 501st Tactical Missile Group at RAF Greenham Common, UK; two wings were based in Britain, with the others in West Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands. To differentiate the ground-based BGM-109G from the sea-based BGM-109A, the USAF renamed the missile Gryphon, though this was rarely used--it was either referred to as a Tomahawk, or as a "Glick-Em" (the phonetic reading of GLCM), or simply "cruises."
The arrival of the BGM-109G was seen as a deadly threat by the Soviet Union. The Gryphon had a very long range of 1730 miles, making it capable of hitting targets within the Soviet Union itself, and though it was comparatively slow compared to ballistic missiles, it was small and hard to intercept, especially if fired in large numbers that thinned out Soviet air defenses. Moreover, unlike the Tomahawk, the Gryphon was only armed with a nuclear warhead, the W84 variable yield, which could be adjusted anywhere from 0.2 kiloton (less destructive than some conventional bombs) to 150 kilotons.
A nightmare scenario for the Soviets was a cloud of BGM-109Gs destroying Soviet SAM networks across Eastern Europe, followed by a barrage of Pershing II IRBMs, which were extremely accurate, against Soviet command and political targets, or SS-20 sites before they were fired. Though the Gryphones were kept at their bases, if there was a threat of war, they would be rapidly dispersed, making them even harder to intercept. The only prevention might be a preemptive strike with SS-20s or SLBMs before the Gryphons were dispersed. As this potentially increased the danger of nuclear war, the deployment of the GLCMs met with outrage from many Europeans, especially British citizens around Greenham Common, who famously and vehemently protested the presence of the missiles. (Some of these protests were secretly funded by the USSR itself, hoping that the GLCMs would be withdrawn under public pressure.)
In the end, the scenario never took place. The deployment of the Gryphon and the Pershing II actually ended up bringing the Soviet Union to the negotiating table, leading to the INF Treaty of 1988. In return for the deactivation of the SS-20 and all other Soviet IRBMs, the United States agreed to withdraw both the BGM-109Gs and the Pershing IIs. Withdrawal began in 1988 and was complete by the time the Soviet Union fell apart in 1991. All but eight BGM-109Gs were dismantled, the rest saved for museums. As it turned out, the "cruises" had ended up helping end the Cold War peacefully, rather than turning it hot.
This Gryphon is one of the remaining eight, on display at the Pima Air and Space Museum. It never left the United States and was never launched, serving instead as a maintenance trainer with the 868th TMTG at Davis-Monthan. It was donated to the museum in the 1990s. I had photographed it back in 2019, then decided not to post it, but since I have been posting missiles lately, got another picture in June 2022, under an appropriately stormy sky.