For many years, the MoD took the view that it wasn’t safe to drive nuclear warheads around in the dark. However, in 2005, they changed to a system of “continuous running” which cuts the time taken for the convoys to complete their journey from three days to less than 24 hours.
For over 25 years, there have been regular warhead convoys between Burghfield and Coulport. Initially, when the new Foden articulated trucks were introduced in July ’92 there was a real push to get the new Trident warheads delivered to Coulport in time for the Trident submarine fleet becoming operational. At the same time, old Chevaline warheads were brought south for dismantling (note 1). For instance there were ten trips to Coulport in 1993. Once most of the Trident stockpile was either loaded on submarines or stored in the bunkers at Coulport, frequency decreased to 2-6 convoys a year.
The convoys take warheads back to Burghfield for checking on how the components are ageing and coping with exposure to the radioactive elements contained within them, and deliver the occasional new replacement warhead to keep AWE’s warhead building skills honed!
Before continuous running the routine was for convoys to take three days to travel north, and then after a number of days in Coulport loading and unloading, another three days to travel south again.
In March 2002 Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) took over control of warhead transport from the RAF. With the MoD’s move in 2005 to running Burghfield/Aldermaston to Coulport as a continuous trip, the MDP have been tasked to achieve what the RAF could not or would not perform: continuous and dark running. Nukewatch has been monitoring and tracking these changes and continues to do so despite the challenges one-day runs pose. Stop-off places on route for a brief break and/or crew change have been changeable and new military establishments being used for a break on route. These have included, Fulwood Barracks in Preston, Weeton Camp near Blackpool, MoD Stafford, Chetwynd Barracks in Nottingham, MoD Kineton Warks, With these changes, many new councils find they have nuclear warheads passing through their authorities or at least on routes much closer to built up areas than previously.
In 2011 the Foden tractor units were replaces by Mercedes-Benz Acros units. The escort vehicles have also changed and are currently armored Mercedes vans.
On 31 July 2015 the Ministry of Defence withdrew its ‘High Security Vehicles’, which had been used to transport Special Nuclear Materials, from service. SNMs are now transported in the same ‘Truck Cargo Heavy Duty’ vehicles which are used to carry assembled nuclear warheads.
Nukewatch will continue to track and monitor these changes to convoys and pass on new information as it becomes available.
Notes
1. Chevalines were taken to RAF Honington in East Anglia for storage so that dismantling could wait until the Trident warheads were all built.
