Holy Crud! Do not stand in the way of the Minuteman III concrete top!

One of my favorite videos. But it leaves out a lot of info.

The launch Facilities depicted in this video were constructed in the early 1960's when the CEP was estimated to be 900m-1200m. Good for the time but it also required very large weapons to accomplish the mission. The Titan II missile, the US largest nuclear capable missile, the one which launched the NASA Gemini missions, also carried the W-53 re-entry vehicle rated for a nominal yield of 9 Mt. Based on the assumtion that the Soviets could deliver the same nuclear punch, the debris catchers which are standard on Minuteman silos are not dipicted in the video.

Another thing the video doesn't account for is the ablative cork which is used to protect the missile during the 'hot' launch. Originally, during the MMI and MMII systems, a chemical known as AVCoat, developed by Textron, was used to aleviate the thermal forces during launch. This has since been replaced by natural cork, which thermal protective properties excede the man-made AvCoat. The application of cork also required the application of a anti-fungal paint, which gives MMIII its characteristic green appearance.

One last thing the video doesn't portray are the penetration aids (haha)
From chafe to decoys to EMP weapons, the three warhead missile is a very capable weapon system.

For your edification.