In a surprising turn of events, a decommissioned rocket, once capable of carrying a nuclear warhead, was discovered in the garage of a recently deceased homeowner in Washington. The discovery prompted an immediate response from the local police bomb squad last Thursday. After a thorough examination, the squad determined that the missile remnants were inert and posed no threat to the local community.
The late homeowner’s neighbor informed the police that the deceased had purchased the obsolete military equipment from an estate sale. The police were notified about the rocket’s existence when the neighbor attempted to donate it to the National Museum of the US Air Force in Ohio. The museum contacted the local authorities, who then inspected the item.
Upon inspection, the police identified the metallic object as a Douglas AIR-2 Genie, an unguided air-to-air rocket designed to carry a 1.5 kiloton W25 warhead. This type of rocket dates back to the Cold War era. The bomb squad confirmed that the rocket was indeed inert and contained no fuel, essentially making it a harmless artifact.
The military showed no interest in reclaiming the unusable missile, so it was left in the possession of the neighbor. The neighbor plans to restore the historical piece for display in a museum.
The Douglas AIR-2 Genie was first tested in 1956 and entered service in the following year, according to the Air Force museum. In July 1957, a Genie was launched from a fighter jet at 18,000 feet and detonated over Yucca Flats in Nevada. This marked the first and only test of its kind conducted by the US.
The discovery of the rocket left the Bellevue police department, a West Coast department serving a city of approximately 150,000 residents, in awe. The department shared a picture of the unusual find on social media, jokingly referencing Elton John’s hit single “Rocket Man” in their tweet.