Atlas A Modified

XB-65A

Mission Profile

The Atlas A Modified (XB-65A) was a single-stage American test vehicle in the Atlas family, an early prototype of the Atlas ICBM used for propulsion and structural testing under the Atlas ICBM Program. Standing 22.9 m tall with a 3.1 m diameter and a liftoff mass of 103 tonnes, it generated 1,630 kN of thrust. First flying in December 1957, the Atlas A Modified validated the balloon-tank structural concept and stage-and-a-half propulsion system that would define the Atlas family for decades.