Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index

Operation Flintlock

American military history records two operations called Flintlock:


Operation Flintlock was the 31 January 1944 invasion of Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. This attack sank a large number of Japanese ships and stripped the air base at Truk of its offensive potential. With Truk neutralized, it could be bypassed, forgoing a costly invasion. Kwajalein fell on 7 February after stiff Japanese resistance. See Operation Elkton.


Operation Flintlock was a series of forty nuclear tests conducted with one exception at the Nevada Test Site. These tests followed Whetstone and were in turn followed by Latchkey.

The Red Hot test was notable for the release of one million curies of radioactivity which drifted as far as eastern Iowa. The individual test shots were:

Flintlock Test Blasts
Test Name Date Location Yield Note

Bronze23 July 1965Nevada Test Siteabout 60 kilotons
Mauve6 August 1965Nevada Test Siteabout 18 kilotons 
Centaur27 August 1965Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Screamer1 September 1965Nevada Test Siteabout 12 kilotons 
Charcoal10 September 1965Nevada Test Site20-200 kilotons 
Elkhart17 September 1965Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Longshot29 October 1965near Amchitka, Alaska80 kilotons 
Sepia12 November 1965Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Corduroy3 December 1965Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Emerson16 December 1965Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Buff16 December 1965Nevada Test Siteabout 36 kilotons 
Maxwell13 January 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Lampblack18 January 1966Nevada Test Siteabout 36 kilotons 
Dovekie21 January 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Plaid II3 February 1966Nevada Test Siteabout 32 kilotons 
Rex24 February 1966Nevada Test Site19 kilotons 
Red Hot5 March 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Finfoot7 March 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Clymer12 March 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Purple18 March 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Templar24 March 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotonsOperation Plowshare
Lime1 April 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Stutz6 April 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Tomato7 April 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Duyea14 April 1966Nevada Test Site70 kilotons 
Pin Stripe25 April 1966Nevada Test Siteabout 4 kilotons 
Traveler4 May 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Cyclamen5 May 1966Nevada Test Site12 kilotons 
Chartreuse6 May 1966Nevada Test Site73 kilotons 
Tapestry12 May 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Piranha13 May 1966Nevada Test Siteabout 100 kilotons 
Dumont19 May 1966Nevada Test Siteabout 190 kilotons 
Discus Thrower27 May 1966Nevada Test Site22 kilotons 
Pile Driver2 June 1966Nevada Test Site62 kilotons 
Tan3 June 1966Nevada Test Siteabout 140 kilotons 
Puce10 June 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Double Play15 June 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Kankakee15 June 1966Nevada Test Site<20 kilotons 
Vulcan4 May 1966Nevada Test Site25 kilotons Operation Plowshare
Halfbreak30 June 1966Nevada Test Site365 kilotons