  According to numerous press reports, in 2007 at Minot US Air Force Base six
AGM-129 Advanced Cruise Missiles mistakenly armed with W80-1 thermonuclear
warheads were loaded on a B-52H heavy bomber in place of six unarmed AGM-129
missiles that were awaiting transport to Barksdale US Air Force Base for
disposal. The live nuclear missiles were not reported missing, and stood
unsecured and unguarded while mounted to the aircraft for a period of 36 hours.
The present work investigates the radiological hazards associated with a
worst-case postulated accident that would disperse the nuclear material of the
six warheads in large metropolitan cities. Using computer simulations
approximate estimates are derived for the ensuing cancer mortality and land
contamination after the accident. Health, decontamination and evacuation costs
are also estimated in the framework of the linear risk model.
