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Aerospace Defense Command ('''ADC'''), was a major command of the United States Air Force . Its mission was to provide the USAF air defense role of the United States. TIMELINE ;), New York ; under both the Air Defense Command and Tactical Air Command ; ; 1 July 1950 : Air Defense Command deactivated because the Continental Air Command gradually assumed full charge of United States air defense ; 1 January 1951 : Air Defense Command re-established, again at Mitchel Field ; 8 January 1951 : Air Defense Command headquarters moves from Mitchel Field to Ent Air Force Base, Colorado ; 14 July 1952 : Air Defense Command begins 24-hour Ground Observer Corps operations ; 1 September 1954 : The Continental Air Defense Command is established at Ent Air Force Base as a joint-service force, taking control of Air Force Air Defense Command forces, Army Anti-Aircraft Command forces, and Naval air defense forces ; 12 September 1957 : The North American Air Defense Command is established at Ent Air Force Base as an international organization, taking operational control of Canadian Air Defense Command air defense units and United States Continental Air Defense Command air defense units ; 31 July 1959 : The Ground Observer Corps, active since July 1952, is abolished because of improvements in radar technology ; 15 January 1968 : Air Defense Command is redesignated as Aerospace Defense Command ; 1 July 1973 : Continental Air Defense Command and Aerospace Defense Command headquarters begins consolidation and streamlining ; 4 February 1974 : The Department of Defense announces plans for cutbacks in air defense forces showing increasing emphasis on ballistic missile attack warning and decreasing emphasis on bomber defense ; 30 June 1974 : Continental Air Defense Command dis-established ; 1 July 1975 : Aerospace Defense Command designated a "Specified Command" taking over Continental Air Defense Command roles and responsibilities ; 1 October 1979 : Aerospace Defense Command inactivated as a Major Command; Air Defense, Tactical Air Command established as a Numbered Air Force equivalent under Tactical Air Command HISTORY World War II The organization was created by the War Department as the Air Defense Command on 26 February 1940 . As a component of the U.S. First Army , its mission was to plan for and execute the air defense of the continental United States . During World War II , the ADC operated four distinct air defense districts within the US. These were:
The primary mission of these Air Districts initially was to fly antisubmarine patrols. By the fall of 1942 these patrols, in conjunction with naval operations, had succeeded in driving off the German U-boat packs that had been taking such a heavy toll of shipping in the western Atlantic Ocean . In addition, ADC flew patrols in the Gulf Of Mexico , in the Caribbean Sea , and along the west coast of the United States . The antisubmarine mission was turned over to the Navy in 1943, and for the balance of the war, these commands trained aircrews for overseas deployments to the various war theaters. Later, as the threat of an attack by enemy forces on the US homeland diminished, they were primarily engaged in replacement crew training. The ADC Air District structure was abolished in April 1944 along with Air Defense Command. The Numbered Air Force s and their training mission was turned over to the USAAF Continental Air Forces training command. Postwar History The second iteration of Air Defense Command (ADC) was established on 21 March 1946 as a component of the United States Army Air Forces , again with the mission of planning for and executing the air defense of the United States. ADC was headquartered at Mitchel Army Airfield , New York . On 1 December 1948 , ADC became a subordinate component of the Continental Air Command and delegated supervision of the build-up of the air defense system. On 1 January 1951 , Air Defense Command was reestablished as a major air command at Ent AFB , Colorado . Fighter Defense See Also: Aerospace Defense Command Fighter Squadrons California in 1958. Lockheed F-104A-15-LO Starfighters 56-0772 and 56-0776 are identifable]] The growth and development of the ADC air defense system grew steadily throughout the Cold War era. From four day-type fighter squadrons (FDS) in 1946, the ADC interceptor force grew to nintey-three (93) active Air Force fighter interceptor squadrons, seventy-six (76) Air National Guard Squadrons, several Naval Squadrons, radar squadrons, training squadrons and numerous support units that have played important roles in our nation's defense. Interceptor aircraft of Aerospace Defense Command were:
RADAR Defense system in blue. Coverage for both systems extends over the North Pole and both report back to Cheyenne Mountain Air Base in Colorado .]] See Also: Pinetree Line Distant Early Warning Line Texas Towers Ballistic Missile Early Warning System By 1953, a modern United States continental RADAR system had been completed and additional radar units were programmed to blanket the country with medium and high-altitude radar cover. At the same time, the decision was made to extend radar coverage as far from the American borders as possible. An agreement with Canada for mutual defense resulted in the extension of radar coverage into southern Canada in 1952 (the Pinetree Line) , and permission was granted by the USAF to erect the Distant Early Warning (DEW) Line , which became operational under ADC control in 1958. The DEW line consisted of radars and continuous-wave stations along the Arctic Circle from Alaska to Greenland . The massive construction project employed over 25,000 people. The line consisted of sixty-three stations stretching from Alaska to Baffin Island , covering almost 10,000 km. The project was finished in 1957 and was considered an engineering marvel. The next year, the line became a cornerstone of the new NORAD organization of joint continental air defence. Quite quickly after its completion, the DEW line lost much of its purpose. It was useless against ICBMs and submarine-launched attacks. A number of stations were decommissioned, but the bulk were retained to monitor potential Soviet air activities and to assert Canada's sovereignty in the Arctic . Work was begun in 1953 to erect a number of off-shore radars platforms known as Texas Towers to extend the range of RADAR into the Atlantic Ocean. To provide even more distant off-shore coverage, the Airborne Early Warning program was begun, consisting of two wings of Lockheed RC-121 Warning Stars . The RC-121s and Texas Towers, it was believed, would contribute to extending contiguous east-coast radar coverage some 300 to 500 miles seaward. In terms of the air threat of the 1950’s, this meant a gain of at least 30 extra minutes warning time of an oncoming bomber attack. One of the Texas Towers (TT-4) collapsed into the Atlantic Ocean with significant loss of life in January 1961. The tragedy of TT-4, as much as anything else, sealed the fate of the others. While both remaining towers were immediately checked for safety and structural strength, and pronounced sound in this regard, their days were numbered. The entire project was ended in 1963, and the remaining facilities were decomissioned and sunk in 1964. To provide far distant early warning of missile attacks, the Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS) was begun in 1958, with huge radar stations destined for Alaska , Greenland and England . These radars were capable of detecting missiles in flight, deep in the Soviet Union or in other similarly distant territory. SAGE Air Defense System See Also: Semi Automatic Ground Environment In 1953, development of the Semi-Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) System began. It was destined to become the nerve center of air defense. It was an automated control system used by NORAD for collecting, tracking and intercepting enemy bomber aircraft from the late 1950s into the 1980s. In later versions, the system could automatically direct aircraft to an interception by sending commands directly to the aircraft's autopilot. The first of the SAGE sectors was put into operation in July 1958, and was rapidly joined by others in the eastern and northern United States during 1959 and 1960. This electronic network is based on the provision of digital computers and ancillary data-transmitting equipment at strategic locations throughout the country. A major purpose of this system is to provide instantaneous information to interceptor aircraft in flight as well as trigger other defensive measures. By the time it was fully operational the Soviet bomber threat had been replaced by the Soviet missile threat, for which SAGE was entirely inadequate. Nevertheless, SAGE was tremendously important. It led to huge advances in online systems and interactive computing, real-time computing, and data communications using modems. It is generally considered to be one of the most advanced and successful large computer systems ever developed. Anti-Aircraft Missiles See Also: Bomarc Missile Program The Bomarc Missile Program (BOMARC IM-99A) was a joint United States Of America - Canada effort between 1957 and 1971 to protect against the USSR bomber threat. It involved the deployment of tactical stations armed with Bomarc missiles along the east and west coasts of North America and the central areas of the continent. The supersonic Bomarc missiles were the first long-range Anti-aircraft Missiles in the world. They were capable of carrying conventional or Nuclear warheads. Their intended role in defence was in an intrusion prevention perimeter. Bomarcs aligned on the eastern and western coasts of North America would theoretically launch and destroy enemy bombers before the bombers could drop their payloads on industrial regions. BOMARC and the SAGE guidance system were phased out in the late sixties as they were ineffective and costly. When the BOMARC missile was phased out, the SAGE guidance sytem (TDDL, Time-Division Data Link) continued to be used for sending commands to Nike missiles and intertceptor autopilots. NORAD Development See Also: North American Aerospace Defense Command The command and control of the massive North American air defense system was a significant challenge. Discussions and studies of joint systems between the United States and Canada had been ongoing since the early 1950s and culminated on 1 August 1957 , with the announcement by the U.S. and Canada to establish an integrated command, the North American Air Defense Command . On 12 September operations commenced in Colorado. A formal NORAD agreement between the two governments was signed on 12 May 1958 . Deactivation The ADC was renamed the Aerospace Defense Command on 15 January 1968 . However, with the development of accurate, long-range Intercontinental Ballistic Missile s, the threat of enemy aircraft over United States airspace sharply diminished. Many ADC units were were consolidated during the 1970s, and the air defense of the US shifted more to the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve , and the need for ADC diminished. Many ADC Radar Squadrons and Air Defense Groups (Radar Squadrons with BUIC computers) continued operating well into the 70's. As part of realignment of military assets the air assets of ADC were assigned to Tactical Air Command in 1979. With this move many Air National Guard units that had an air defense mission also came under the control of TAC, which established a component called Air Defense, Tactical Air Command (ADTAC). ADTAC was headquartered at North American Aerospace Defense Command, Ent AFB Colorado . In essence, Tactical Air Command became the old Continental Air Command. The Aerospace Defense Command was inactivated on 31 March 1980 . AEROSPACE DEFENSE COMMAND AIR DIVISIONS ADC established Air Divsions to provide command and control over various Air Defense Regions of the United States. These Air Divisions were similar to Numbered Air Force s. Many were consolodated during the 1970s due to the introduction of ICBMs and the almost null threat of enemy aircraft over United States airspace. The Northwest and Western Air Defense Regions remained active up to the 1979 deactivation of ADC and were transferred to ADTAC.
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