Convair B-58 “Hustler“ MITO Tests 1963 (Restored Color)

There’s some beautiful color B-58 Hustler take-off footage here, shot from many angles, including overhead helicopter shots of dual launches and afterburners lighting up the night. I digitally restored the color. During the depths of the Cold War, SAC bombers had only 15 to 20-minutes to get airborne between the launch of enemy missiles and their arrival at US targets. That meant that the ability get US air forces on their way quickly and efficiently was absolutely essential for survivability, striking power and deterrence. A critical element in this quick response was “MITO“ - “Minimum Interval Take-Off.“ This involved determining the optimum interval between the launching aircraft to achieve the fastest possible deployment, while avoiding jet thrust and wing turbulence from preceding aircraft while allowing an adequate safety margin in case an individual plane had to abort. In January, 1963, SAC B-58 units conducted a series of tests to determine optimum MITO for the Hustler