Called by some the "Know-How Missile of American Rocketry" and by others the "Never-go Navaho" it remains today one of the more ungainly attempts at cruise missiledom. 

13 each X-10 vehicles were built in the original NASA test program.  The X-10 then became the G26 and 9 were flown in this booster/cruise missile configuration. 2 were flown in Project RISE (Research Into Supersonic Environment).  The final 3 Navahos in flying condition were flown as target drones for the BoMarc (that must have really gotten North Americans goat) The cruise missile portion was reworked and outfitted with turbojets and flown for many years as the "Hound Dog" hung from the wings of B-52s. 

The rocket motor designed and built for the booster stage went on to become the engine for the famous Redstone missile of Project Mercury fame and lofted Shepard, Carpenter, and Glenn skyward on a booster originally intended to lob nukes into the Red Square.  Click here to see the genesis of the V-2, Redstone, and Navaho engines.

G26 Restoration photos at Cape Canaveral Hanger 3

Captions and photos by Tim Wilson

However, business got in the way so I sought help locally by posting a "help wanted" ad in the Usenet newsgroup Rec.Models.Rockets:
 

Help Wanted - Cape Canaveral - Inquire Within

I'm desperately looking for someone to go to Cape Canaveral and tape off a missile.
Measurements are not currently in the public record.  They would need to take station
measurements and diameters, take some photos and just nose around in general.

The thing is currently down off display, in a hanger, on cradles being corrosion-proofed
and repainted in it's flight colors.  The work is being done in this historic hanger which
has an upstairs office used by Herr Doktor Werner Von Braun while he was working on
projects at the Cape.

I have made contact with the contractor doing the project for the museum and he is more
than happy to let a couple of people crawl all over and through the thing for a day.  It's a
really cool missile and the gentleman doing the restoration does it for a living as an
independent contractor so he knows a lot about rockets and the like.  Sounded like a great
guy on the phone.

A video tape of the adventure would be outstanding.  The bird goes back on display May 26
(16 days) so time is of the essence.

If you are interested email me or post here and I'll give you more details. This is an experience
not to be missed.

Bob Fortune

I made it over to hangar C yesterday and took some measurements and
pictures (one is attached to whet your appetite).  If you can really model
this thing, you've got way more skill than I -- it's nothing but compound
curves and bizarre angles.  Keith and Co. have it pretty-well stripped
down, as you can see.

I'll get these dimensions on paper somehow and forward them on to you.  I
know I didn't get everything, but maybe you'll have enough here to work
with.  While the missile was pretty accessible, the guys were working on
the booster and it was hard to get to -- all those curves were tough to
measure, too.  Keith said he would have it in the hangar until the end of
the month, so maybe I can take another shot at it if you find you're
missing something critical.

Later!

-- Tim  : )