The Armed Forces Special Weapons Project (AFSWP) was a joint-service organization responsible for the United States’ nuclear weapons between January 1, 1947 and May 6, 1959. It inherited its immediate WW2 era predecessor, the Manhattan Project’s, defense-related components, the civil aspects going to the Atomic Energy Commission. The AFSWP trained personnel on the complex early atomic weapons that required technical expertise to assemble, provided support for nuclear testing (mainly before 1948), and provided security for the weapons themselves. [1][2]
The Armed Forces Special Weapons Project was headquartered in Washington DC, though field operations occurred throughout the United States [1]. The AFSWP increasingly moved towards training and planning duties after 1948 because nuclear weapons technology matured to the point where less training was required for use [1] and because nuclear testing was being phased out as a matter of policy to defuse Cold War tensions [2][3]. The AFSWP became the Defense Atomic Support Agency under the Secretary of Defense’s authority to reorganize service agencies, as part of the Defense Reorganization Act of 1958 [1][4][5].
Insignia:
The AFSWP’s patch features an atom with a mushroom cloud rising from it and is the organization’s official logo. This was exclusively worn by US Army personnel attached to the AFSWP. [6]
Stamp:
1951 date.