Operation Castle
Bikini Atoll and Enewetak, Marshall Islands in 1954
Shots Bravo, Romeo, Koon, Union, Yankee, Nectar
Veterans may receive $75,000 Nuclear Test Site Cancer Compensation. Find out if you qualify.
Operation Castle was a six-detonation nuclear weapon test series (see table) held at the Atomic Energy Commission’s (AEC) Pacific Proving Ground (PPG) from March 1 to May 31, 1954. The PPG consisted principally of Enewetak and Bikini Atoll in the northwestern Marshall Islands in the Central Pacific Ocean. Peak DOD numerical strength of CASTLE was approximately 17,300 personnel.
Dates: March 1 - May 31, 1954
Videos
The Castle Bravo Disaster - A "Second Hiroshima"
List of Participants
| SHOT | DATE | SITE | US SHIP PARTICIPATION |
| Bravo | 3/1/1954 | Bikini Atoll | Curtiss, Epperson, Nicholas, Renshaw, Philip, Grosse Point, Bairoko, HMR-362, VC-3, VP-29, Estes, Apache, Cocopa, Molala, Sioux, Tawakoni, Bikini Boat Pool, Belle Grove, Fred C. Ainsworth, LST-551, HMNZS Hawea, Edmonds, VR-7, Patapsco, Gypsy, George Eastman, Granville S. Hall, Reclaimer, Mispillion, LST-762, Douglas A. Munro, Edmonds, Genesee*, Manatee*, Merapi*, PC-1141, PC-1145, Silverstein |
| Romeo | 3/27/1954 | Bikini Atoll | Curtiss, Epperson, Nicholas, Renshaw, Philip, Grosse Point, Bairoko, HMR-362, VC-3, VP-29, Estes, Apache, Cocopa, Molala, Sioux, Tawakoni, Bikini Boat Pool, Belle Grove, Fred C. Ainsworth, LST-551, HMNZS Hawea, Edmonds, VR-7, Gypsy, Mender, George Eastman, Granville S. Hall, Reclaimer, LST-762, LST-1146 |
| Koon | 4/7/1954 | Bikini Atoll | Curtiss, Epperson, Nicholas, Renshaw, Philip, Grosse Point, Bairoko, HMR-362, VC-3, VP-29, Estes, Apache, Cocopa, Molala, Sioux, Tawakoni, Bikini Boat Pool, Belle Grove, Fred C. Ainsworth, LST-551, HMNZS Hawea, Edmonds, VR-7, Mender, Reclaimer, Shea, Terrell County, LST-762, Karin, Unadilla |
| Union | 4/26/1954 | Bikini Atoll | Curtiss, Epperson, Nicholas, Renshaw, Philip, Grosse Point, Bairoko, HMR-362, VC-3, VP-29, Estes, Apache, Cocopa, Molala, Sioux, Tawakoni, Bikini Boat Pool, Belle Grove, Fred C. Ainsworth, LST-551, HMNZS Hawea, Edmonds, VR-7, Mender, George Eastman, Granville S. Hall, Reclaimer, Shea, Terrell County, Deliver, Leo |
| Yankee | 5/5/1954 | Bikini Atoll | Curtiss, Epperson, Nicholas, Renshaw, Philip, Grosse Point, Bairoko, HMR-362, VC-3, VP-29, Estes, Apache, Cocopa, Molala, Sioux, Tawakoni, Bikini Boat Pool, Belle Grove, Fred C. Ainsworth, LST-551, HMNZS Hawea, Edmonds, VR-7, Mender, George Eastman, Granville S. Hall, Shea, Terrell County, Arequipa, Deliver, LST-975, Navasota |
| Nectar | 5/14/1954 | Enewetak Atoll | Curtiss, Epperson, Nicholas, Renshaw, Philip, Grosse Point, Bairoko, HMR-362, VC-3, VP-29, Estes, Apache, Cocopa, Molala, Sioux, Tawakoni, Bikini Boat Pool, Belle Grove, Fred C. Ainsworth, LST-551, HMNZS Hawea, Edmonds, VR-7, Terrell County, Deliver, Namakagon |
Contact Us for More Information
If you were exposed to the effects of Operation Castle and were subsequently diagnosed with cancer, please call the National Cancer Benefits Center at (800) 414-4328 or use our online form to request more information.
