Download or read book Birth of Air Force Satellite Reconnaissance Facts Recollections and Reflections written by Peter Swan and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on 2015-05-25 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This history of SAFSP is dedicated to all those men and women who fought the Cold War, in silence - from above. No organization is better at gathering overhead intelligence than the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). Today's NRO grew out of 3 organizations: AF, CIA, and Navy. The AF office for satellite reconnaissance was called the Secretary of Air Force's Office of Special Projects [SAFSP]. This monograph describes the birth of Air Force satellite reconnaissance. When SAFSP was created in response to Presidential recognition of a national imperative, 4 tenets captured the sense of urgency: direct access to national leadership, covert management/operations, highest national priority, and rapid procurement. In addition, 3 management principles led to SAFSP's success over 30+ years of providing reconnaissance intelligence: strong dedication to mission, empowerment at all levels, and reporting by exception.
Download or read book Onizuka Air Force Base written by Joseph T. Page II and published by Arcadia Publishing. This book was released on 2019 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For nearly five decades, some of the United States military's most secretive operations were conducted out of a collection of nondescript buildings at the intersection of State Route 237 and Mathilda Avenue in Sunnyvale, California. The installation was known by a variety of names in its early years: Satellite Test Center, Air Force Satellite Control Facility, the "Blue Cube," and Sunnyvale Air Force Station. In July 1986, the facility was renamed Onizuka Air Force Base after Col. Ellison S. Onizuka, the first Asian American astronaut, who was killed during the space shuttle Challenger accident. The location was selected due to its proximity to Lockheed Missiles and Space Company's Sunnyvale facilities and supported early satellite reconnaissance programs such as Corona, Gambit, and Hexagon. As the nation's nucleus for satellite command and control, workers at Onizuka Air Force Base directed efforts for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), US military, and NASA's space shuttle program until the closure of the base in 2010.
Download or read book A History of Satellite Reconnaissance written by James D. Outzen and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 602 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book West Point Graduates and the United States Air Force written by Charles F.G. Kuyk, Jr. and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2020-06-15 with total page 294 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: West Point graduates played a central role in developing U.S. military air and space power from the earliest days of mechanized flight through the establishment of the U.S. Air Force in 1947, and continuing through the Persian Gulf War. These graduates served at a time when the world's greatest wave of technological advancement occurred: in aviation, nuclear weapons, rocketry, ICBMs, computers, satellite systems in inner space and man in outer space. This history traces the advancement of weapons and space technology that became the hallmark of the U.S. Air Force, and the pivotal role that West Point graduates played in integrating them into a wide variety of Air Force systems and programs. Many became aircraft commanders, test pilots, astronauts and, later in their careers, general officers who helped shape and implement technologies still in use today.
Download or read book Our Mission Revealed written by Lloyd R. Spanberger and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2014-07-26 with total page 163 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It was the early 1960s and our country was in the midst of the cold war with the Soviet Union. President Eisenhower had, earlier, decided to initiate development of a spy satellite system to obtain strategic intelligence data on the Soviets. A massive program was instituted to accomplish this goal and, as part of the overall program, the concept of an all-military facility to provide R&D support and duplicate imagery processing from these satellites, was ordered. This began the establishment of the AFSPPF, which operated for 15 years in that capacity. This story describes the mission of the AFSPPF and what it was like to work in an Ultra Top Secret operation, whose mission was not disclosed until now. No-one involved with our operation could talk about it to anyone, including family, friends or anyone else in the military, unless they were properly cleared and were amongst those who needed to know. All content herein was derived from the personal recollections of our remaining members and from what little official declassified documentation we could find. It is hoped the reader will enjoy learning what it was like to work in such a unique Top Secret unit of the U.S. Air Force. AFSPPF was an Air Force Headquarters unit created in 1961 to conduct the research and development (R&D) necessary to provide the best possible production equipment and techniques in support of special projects specified by the Secretary of the Air Force. There is no declassified documented record of the activity within the facility. The facility operated in a Top Secret, Black Opps mode throughout its entire 15-year lifetime. Aspects of the units mission evolved over time, however the mainstay was production, evaluation and distribution of classified imagery, from spy satellites and aircraft, to our nations intelligence community, in a timely manner. The production and evaluation directorates, within the facility, also assisted with the many R&D projects in support of the overall national reconnaissance program. It was an exciting time for all of us. We not only provided the best photographic intelligence possible to our nations leaders, but also had a lot of fun doing it. It was hard work and long hours, all with no individual recognition given. There was, however a degree of self-satisfaction involved. We knew and understood the objectives and often saw details of our advisories military capabilities that were never exposed to the public eye. The satellites and aircraft involved have now all been declassified and our mission can now be revealed, so all can see what really went on in such a Top Secret operation. This true story is not only about our mission, but about the unique, exciting and sometimes humorous experiences of the people who did the work.
Download or read book The National Reconnaissance Office at 50 Years written by Bruce Berkowitz and published by National Reconnaissance Office. This book was released on 2011 with total page 64 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Beyond Horizons written by David N. Spires and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 520 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book High Frontier written by Curtis Peebles and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 88 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Spying from Space written by David Christopher Arnold and published by Texas A&M University Press. This book was released on 2008-06-12 with total page 230 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On August 14, 1960, a revolution quietly occurred in the reconnaissance capabilities of America. When the Air Force C-119 Flying Boxcar Pelican 9 caught a bucket returning from space with film from a satellite, the American intelligence community gained access to previously denied information about the Soviet Union. The Corona reconnaissance satellite missions that followed lifted the veil of secrecy from the communist bloc, revealing, among other things, that no “Missile Gap” existed. This revolution in military intelligence could not have occurred without the development of the command and control systems that made the Space Race possible. In Spying from Space, David Christopher Arnold tells the story of how military officers and civilian contractors built the Air Force Satellite Control Facility (AFSCF) to support the National Reconnaissance Program. The AFSCF also had a unique relationship with the National Reconnaissance Office, a secret organization that the U.S. government officially concealed as late as the 1990s. Like every large technology system, the AFSCF evolved as a result of the interaction of human beings with technology and with each other. Spying from Space fills a gap in space history by telling the story of the command and control systems that made rockets and satellites useful. Those interested in space flight or intelligence efforts will benefit from this revealing look into a little-known aspect of American achievement. Those fascinated by how large, complex organizations work will also find this an intriguing study of inter-service rivalries and clashes between military and civilian cultures.
Download or read book A History of Satellite Reconnaissance written by Robert L. Perry and published by Military Bookshop. This book was released on 2012-02-01 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Full color photographs and illustrations throughout. Center for the Study of National Reconnaissance Classics. Originally publihed in November 1973, declassified September 17, 2011. Includes a preface by James D. Outzen.
Download or read book History of Satellite Reconnaissance written by Robert L. Perry and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book 20th Century Spy in the Sky Satellites written by U. S. Military and published by . This book was released on 2017-04-17 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Part of our comprehensive series on the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) and its "spy satellite" network, this volume covers additional aspects of the history of the NRO as an organization, with a special focus on leaders, pioneers, and founders. It also includes the "lost" Volume IV history written by Robert Perry. Contents include: Section 1: Pioneers of National Reconnaissance Section 2: Program Directors of The NRO - ABC & D Section 3: Founders of National Reconnaissance Section 4: Leaders of The National Reconnaissance Office 1961-2001 Section 5: Directors of The National Reconnaissance Office at 50 Years Section 6: NRO History - Robert Perry -Identified by the NRO History Staff on 10 June 1999 as Being Robert Perry's Volume IV NRO designs, builds and operates the nation's reconnaissance satellites. NRO products, provided to an expanding list of customers like the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Department of Defense (DoD), can warn of potential trouble spots around the world, help plan military operations, and monitor the environment. As part of the 16-member Intelligence Community, the NRO plays a primary role in achieving information superiority for the U. S. Government and Armed Forces. A DoD agency, the NRO is staffed by DoD and CIA personnel. It is funded through the National Reconnaissance Program, part of the National Foreign Intelligence Program. The NRO Vision: Vigilance From Above. NRO Mission: Innovative Overhead Intelligence Systems for National Security. In recent years, the NRO has implemented a series of actions declassifying some of its operations. The organization was declassified in September 1992 followed by the location of its headquarters in Chantilly, VA, in 1994.
Download or read book Spies in Space written by U. S. Military and published by . This book was released on 2019-08-30 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This report was released by the NRO in May 2019. Between 1965 and 1969, quietly and without fanfare, 17 non-NASA individuals were astronaut-trained in order to meet the reconnaissance needs of the United States. They came from across the military services. Participants in the Manned Orbiting Laboratory program trained tirelessly and worked relentlessly because they believed they could contribute something unique to U.S. reconnaissance efforts and because they all shared a dream of flying in space. The purpose of this book is to offer a first-hand account of the MOL program for the first time. Shrouded in secrecy, the MOL program was declassified by the National Reconnaissance Office in 2015. This is the first opportunity many participants had to share their experiences with anyone outside their small cadres. The bulk of the book is written in their words, taken directly from transcripts of oral history interviews conducted over the last five years with program participants, as well as official documents and transcripts written by the officers who participated in and managed the programs.This compilation includes a reproduction of the 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community.Although the US Air Force announced the MOL project, they did not disclose the primary purpose of the program-to serve as a manned reconnaissance platform in space. Instead, the Air Force disclosed that the platform would be used for space experiments. During the early planning stages of the MOL program, the US Air Force sought a compelling reason for developing the program given NASA's mandate for manned space flight. The newly formed National Reconnaissance Office provided the most compelling reason for a military manned space program, putting a high resolution telescope into space to observe the activities of the Soviet Union and other US adversaries. At the time MOL was under development, the United States had already demonstrated that imagery and signals intelligence from space satellites provided compelling insight to US leaders, including the president. The limitations, especially of photoreconnaissance satellites, included timeliness of the intelligence and capture of the intelligence in optimal weather conditions. Photoreconnaissance satellites captured images on film that took days to weeks to be deorbited, processed, analyzed, and made available to senior US leadership. Often the imagery was of limited value because of persistent cloud cover over areas of interest to the US. A manned imagery collection system in space seemed an elegant solution for overcoming these limitations. In theory, national reconnaissance astronauts could spot targets of interest, especially in a crisis, and image on orbits where those areas of interest were free of cloud cover. The astronauts could then develop and provide a preliminary readout of conditions on the ground in a crisis situation. If successful, the MOL program would provide intelligence information that would otherwise not be available for critical US decision-making.Although the MOL program was cancelled, its legacy continued not only through the contributions to US space and defense programs by the astronauts who trained for the program, but also the technological development from the program. The technology investments in MOL were transferred to NASA for its own manned laboratory program that launched in the 1970s. The NRO also directly benefited in investments in both launch and reconnaissance collection systems that would mature for use in other NRO programs.
Download or read book The U S Air Force in Space 1945 to the Twenty First Century Proceedings written by Air Force Historical Foundation. Symposium and published by Department of the Air Force. This book was released on 1998-09-02 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contains papers presented at the Air Force Historical Foundation Symposium, held at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland, on September 21-22, 1995. Topics addressed are: Pt. 1, The Formative Years, 1945-1961; Pt. 2, Mission Development and Exploitation Since 1961; and Pt. 3, Military Space Today and Tomorrow. Includes notes, abbreviations & acronyms, an index, and photographs.
Download or read book Meeting the Challenge written by Philip Pressel and published by AIAA (American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics). This book was released on 2013 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Presents the recently declassified story of the design, development, production, and operation of the Hexagon KH-9 reconnaissance satellite, that provided photographic intelligence to the United States government, and it stands as one of the most complicated systems ever put into space.
Download or read book Intelligence Revolution 1960 written by Ingard Clausen and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Overview: Provides a history of the Corona Satellite photo reconnaissance Program. It was a joint Central Intelligence Agency and United States Air Force program in the 1960s. It was then highly classified.
Download or read book Apollo s Warriors written by Michael E. Haas and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on 1998-05 with total page 388 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Presenting a fascinating insider's view of U.S.A.F. special operations, this volume brings to life the critical contributions these forces have made to the exercise of air & space power. Focusing in particular on the period between the Korean War & the Indochina wars of 1950-1979, the accounts of numerous missions are profusely illustrated with photos & maps. Includes a discussion of AF operations in Europe during WWII, as well as profiles of Air Commandos who performed above & beyond the call of duty. Reflects on the need for financial & political support for restoration of the forces. Bibliography. Extensive photos & maps. Charts & tables.
