War is boring is replete with all kind of crazy studies related to the Vietnam war. That jungle was nearly indestructible, and so were the Ho-Chi-Minh trail and the Paul Doumer bridge. Project Able was not the nuttiest idea explored.



The way I see it, the Vietnam war was a budget orgy (or financial carnage), and any mad scientist could hope funding for his pet, nutty technology provided it blasted the jungle one way or another.



Another example was Gerard Bull, Mr orbital launch gun. He had contact with a Navy guy that hoped Bull could upgrade the battleship guns to double their range, striking (you guess) the Ho Chi Minh trail at lower cost than all those fighter-bombers.



Another was the CH-54 flying crane turned into a bomber, dropping a 20 000 pound bomb to blast the jungle.