Skybird,
The reason the search was kept NOFORN is SOP, it was 1968 and any mention of a nuclear weapon was Secret. Even photographs of nuclear weapons were classified in those days (with the exception of Fat Man and Little Boy).
Obviously, telling our enemies where we have missing components could aid them from a technological standpoint. Such was the case of the USS Scorpion when it sank in May 1968. Everyone knew it was the Scorpion, but only some knew it had two nuclear torpedoes aboard. The fact that the Scorpion sank and had two nukes aboard was only declassified in 1995.
DOD listed 32 nuclear weapons accidents in 1980. Four more were declassified in 1983 by Field Command, Defense Nuclear Agency. However, our research shows that there may be another four- we're awaiting declassified documentation from several agencies. We have also chronicled Soviet accidents which contains some eye opening material along with dozens of U.S. incidents (lightning strikes, fire, sabotage, etc).
Summaries of the weapons recovery are in the USAF Nuclear Safety document (1969) and the 10 Sep 68 document; these documents are a compilation of the content of the declassified messages (the 10 Sep 68 document clearly refers to the missing secondary). The fact that the BBC hasn't posted the document they are referring to (dated Jan 68) leaves me to believe it's a summary of crash scenarios (which I've reviewed a few times- they're just speculation as to what may have happened to weapons components before the recovery was complete).
Yours, Mike
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