posted 03-23-2025 07:01 AM               

Space Cover 798: Let's Go See A Missile Launch!

It's safe to say that in this day and age a state of apathy of the general public towards rocket launches certainly exists. Most people rarely pay attention to rocket launches. With SpaceX launching every few days even us Space Cadets sometimes find ourselves not paying attention to many launches. They have become somewhat commonplace. But this was not always the case.

Back in the 1950's very few people got to witness rocket launches up close. Much of the missile systems testing that was conducted in the early days of the Cape were classified. The Cape was originally established as a weapons test facility testing the systems that would fight World War III if it ever broke out. Launching of satellites and payloads was a byproduct of the missile systems testing.

Despite the missile systems being classified, in May of 1956 the US Air Force announced that they would conduct a launch of a Matador TM-61 missile from Patrick Air Force Base and invited the public to witness the launch up close. The Matador was the first surface to surface cruise missile. It was launched from a transporter erector with a rocket engine getting it off the erector and up to speed before an air-breathing turbojet engine took over to propel the Matador to its target. With a maximum range of over 600 miles for the later versions, the Matador was able to deliver a nuclear warhead to within about ½ mile of its intended target.

On Armed Forces Day May 20, 1956 about 25,000 people gathered at Patrick AFB to witness the launch. The crowd stood only a few hundred yards away At T-0, the rocket engine ignited and the Matador took off over highway A1A and headed over the ocean. The public viewing was a huge success. Not only did the crowd witness the first public rocket launch but they also witnessed, still to this day, the only rocket launch conducted from Patrick AFB. While nearby Cape Canaveral gets all the headlines, Patrick AFB is in fact listed in the historical record as the launch site of 1 missile.

The cover pictured commemorates the 20th anniversary of the public Matador launch. Postmarked at Patrick AFB this cover has a Bob Whitney cachet. I do not know if any items exist for the actual launch in 1956. If anyone has one please share!