Pantex’s Nuclear Legacy: The Last Warhead Was Assembled More Recently Than You Realize

One of the reasons for Amarillo's nickname, Bomb City, is because of Pantex.  Pantex is one of six production facilities in the National Nuclear Security Administration's Nuclear Security Enterprise. But it is the only nuclear weapons assembly and disassembly plant.

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In 1942, a plant was opened near Amarillo to produce bombs and shells for our military during World War II. At the end of the war, the plant was sold. However, the due to a clause, the government reclaimed the land in 1951. Then, the Atomic Energy Commission, started producing chemical explosives and nuclear weapons.

From 1951 on, nuclear and thermonuclear warheads were assembled and disassembled at the plant.

Many of us in the area know that Pantex mainly disassembles the warheads. What some may not realize is that Pantex once assembled these warheads. The last nuclear weapon was assembled at Pantex not too long ago.

Most people would assume that the assembly of nuclear weapons ended in the 70s or early 80s, but Pantex was still putting together nuclear weapons into the early 90s.

The last nuclear weapon at Pantex was assembled 33 years ago in 1991.

After 1991 as the Cold War ended the United States started reducing their weapons and Pantex began to focus on disassembling warheads.   If you notice, Pantex has pits on the land that were created to store plutonium.

It's fascinating that Pantex once assembled nuclear weapons, but the main focus now is to disassemble nuclear weapons and store plutonium.

Read More: This Town Once Had America's Most Powerful Bomb--50 Of Them!

From 1986 to 1996 Pantex disassembled 12,514 warheads.

Source: Texas State Historical Association

According to Pantex:

All work at Pantex is carried out under three overarching priorities: the safety and health of workers and the public, the security of weapons and information, and the protection of the environment.

It's still interesting to know that nuclear weapons were being assembled 17 mile away from Amarillo.  If the need should arise again that the US needed nuclear weapons, Pantex would once again be able to assemble those weapons.