A few years back, when the idea of trundling nuclear missiles around on trains – someone at the time suggested mule trains – so that they would be more difficult to find when the enemy wanted them was dismissed as one of the crazier ideas to come out of the Pentagon, but those pesky Russkies thought it a great idea and went ahead and did it: now the wheel has turned full circle, Uncle Sam thinks it a great idea too, and Rockwell International has just been awarded a $161.7m contract for launch control software for MX missiles destined to spend their lives riding on the railroad – in boxcars to be developed by Westinghouse Electric Corp under a contract values at $167m.
