European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - August 24, 1959, Darmstadt, Hesse                                An Atlas missile is moved to a launching platform. A photo missile division to Mark 5th birthday the 100-ton Atlas icbms to be combat ready for of organization s anniversary next month by Ernie Weatherall staff writer ,. It Gen Bernard Schriever is chief of air research. Maj Gen Osmond Ritland commands the division. The huge Atlas icbms blasts off during a test firing. Monday August 24, 1959 the air Force ballistic missile Divi Sion is going to celebrate its fifth anniversary by having one of its big Bird combat ready by next month. It will be a giant intercontinental bal Listic missile icbms the 100-ton  giant missile which boosted America s three ton baby Moon into orbit last year will be fired in a few weeks by the air Force missile Crews at Vandenberg air Force base in California. The birthday firing was delayed some 60days because some mechanical bugs crept into the Atlas at Cape canaveral. The mis Sile had been scheduled for limited operational capability last july. After five mis fires the combat readiness Date was postponed. During the plague of failures the Light sin a Complex of buildings at Ift Lewood calif., Headquarters of the ballistic missile division burned later than usual. The wires Between Inglewood and Cape canaveral hummed. Some of the Best missile brains of the country were holding conferences Long into the night. Behind closed doors an alarmed House space committee in Washington questioned it Gen Bernard a. Schriever com Mander of the air Force s air research and development come As to what had gone wrong with America s largest Ballis tic missile. The eyes of the nation were also watch ing the sudden failure of the Atlas which a year before had regained America s pres Tige abroad by hurtling a satellite into space. Then As Schriever had predicted the air Force found out what was ailing their big Bird. Soon the Atlas was flaming Down missile Alley the 5,500 mile Atlantic test Range once , heartaches disappointments and Long nights of brain storming by mathematicians aeronautical engineers and physicists have always been routine at Thea ballistic missile division. Five years ago when the division was setup the free world had no ballistic missile hardware no proven propulsion units no continued on Page w the stars and stripes