Launch Complexes 1-2

• Snark
• Matador

Other Programs

• Tethered Aerostat Radar System (TARS)
• Helicopter pads for Mercury Program

Cost

• $930,098 for the launch complex
• Pads $50,000 each
• Tunnels to pads $95,500 each
• Blockhouse $280,384

Launch Complex Highlights

• 18 October 1951 - Contract awarded to build two launch complexes for the Snark missile.
• 26 October 1951 - 15 November 1952 - Construction of the complex.
• 30 June 1953 - Air Force accepted Pad 1
• 30 November 1953 - Air Force accepted Pad 3
• Originally located at the intersection of Central Control Road and Lighthouse Road before Launch Complex 36 was built
• 29 August 1952 - 5 December 1960 - 94 Snark and 3 dummy Snark launched.
• 20 June 1951 - First Matador launch.
• Matador were launched from truck mounted launchers located in several cleared areas east of Pads 1 and 2 using sandbagged above ground bunkers as launch control points. The Matadors were brought to these pads for launching when construction was completed.
• 1957-1958 - Metal semi-permanent preflight buildings 1 and 2 were constructed northwest of the pads to serve as a test shop for the missiles. Pre-launch shelters were metal shelter with canvas awnings on wheels.
• Constructed for the Snark winged missile program, the blockhouse had four-inch thick tempered laminated glass. The image was received through the glass and reflected downward and inward to the observers using a pair of mirrors and another tempered glass window. Blockhouse was 2,172 square feet. The tunnels to the pads were 4'-8' wide and 7.6' high. An observation deck was on top of the blockhouse.
• Each reinforced concrete launch pad was 100 x 200 feet, 8 inches thick and the blockhouse was about 100 feet from the pads. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was the contractor.
• 1 June 1961 - Last Matador launch.
• Total of 286 Matador launches from the Cape
• 1962 - Launch complex deactivated as a missile site and later served as a staging area for amphibious rescue vehicles and a helicopter pad for the Mercury and Gemini programs.
• 1983 - 1989 - Complexes supported Tethered Aerostat Radar System (balloon) for coastal surveillance system
• Mid-1990s - Both pads completely deactivated and presently inactive