Wired magazine article

[CaptainWeekend]

I noticed a nice article about one of the Arizona Titan II sites on the Wired magazine web page today. Don't know if it's going to be in the print magazine, but here's a link to the online article: http://www.wired.com/rawfile/2010/02/gallery-silo-3/. I believe this is site 571-8.

-Steve

[njh621]

This is, indeed, 571-8.

[hockey85]

In Yvonne's picture with her in the LCC, is that pillow and the foam over the PAS speakers authorized IAW SAC directives?

Cory

[njh621]

I'm told that even at the lowest volume setting those speakers were still ridiculously loud (and they almost always crackled), and as a result crews covered them with whatever they could. Some inventive crews made duct-tape covers that fit over the speakers, very inventive really.

[D Preidis]

I'm told that even at the lowest volume setting those speakers were still ridiculously loud (and they almost always crackled), and as a result crews covered them with whatever they could. Some inventive crews made duct-tape covers that fit over the speakers, very inventive really.

At 532-2 and 532-9 we cut thin cardboard to fit, wrapped it with duct tape then put it on with a strip of duct tape on the top only. That way when a EAM came down we could flip the "noise reducer" up and get the full volume, but the darn PAS speakers were deliberately set so loud we never needed to flip up the "reducers."

[bedbug]

Is there anyone else on this forum that was in duty when Kennedy was shot?

I was in duty that day at 570-7. Altho Barthelette remarked about being at his duty station for several hrs. I do not remember it that way.

My girlfrend called, the MCCC took the call, think I was in silo. She informed the MCCC, he told the rest of us and called his wife for further reports as the day went on. All crew members talked to family as the day went on.

I don't believe DEFCON ever changed and SAC ever made any statement over the system about the situation.
Maybe I just remember the Kennedy part and very little about that days alert.

[wblakeney]

Is there anyone else on this forum that was in duty when Kennedy was shot?

I was in duty that day at 570-7. Altho Barthelette remarked about being at his duty station for several hrs. I do not remember it that way.

My girlfrend called, the MCCC took the call, think I was in silo. She informed the MCCC, he told the rest of us and called his wife for further reports as the day went on. All crew members talked to family as the day went on.

I don't believe DEFCON ever changed and SAC ever made any statement over the system about the situation.
Maybe I just remember the Kennedy part and very little about that days alert.

I was still in high school when Kennedy was shot but I can't find anything about the DEFCON changing. It has been to 2 for the Cuban missile crisis and to 3 for 9/11 and the 1973 Yom Kippur war. Of course SAC was at DEFCON 4 for most of the cold war while the rest of the AF was at 5.

[Scruge]

I was still in high school when Kennedy was shot but I can't find anything about the DEFCON changing. It has been to 2 for the Cuban missile crisis and to 3 for 9/11 and the 1973 Yom Kippur war. Of course SAC was at DEFCON 4 for most of the cold war while the rest of the AF was at 5.

I remembered like it happened yesterday, I was in 3rd grade and had just returned to classroom from lunch to click on TV. I was first to alert our teacher whom notified others.

@ wblakeney.
Sounds like you were in missiles about the same time I was, early 70s. I've not come across anyone that remembers an incident occurring in 73-74 time frame when a very high level message was issued to all missile forces. Maybe you recall and can shed more light.
I remembered when we received the message we about shit our shorts. We had always been told in training if we ever received such a message it was as good as gold we'd get our launch orders within the next few minutes. Because we were the ACP, our phones were over loaded with everybody calling us to find out what was going on. As soon as we were able to clear our lines we started calling our families to let them know something was up. After about an hour we finally received a message which returned us to normal status. We were later instructed to report in for a special debriefing once we returned to base after alert. At the debriefing it was disclosed that we had tracked on radar an off course soviet missile heading in the general direction of Alaska. I don't recall the briefing being classified, but I don't think the AF volunteered the info to media.
I've never heard or read anything about it since.

[wblakeney]

I remembered like it happened yesterday, I was in 3rd grade and had just returned to classroom from lunch to click on TV. I was first to alert our teacher whom notified others.

@ wblakeney.
Sounds like you were in missiles about the same time I was, early 70s. I've not come across anyone that remembers an incident occurring in 73-74 time frame when a very high level message was issued to all missile forces. Maybe you recall and can shed more light.
I remembered when we received the message we about shit our shorts. We had always been told in training if we ever received such a message it was as good as gold we'd get our launch orders within the next few minutes. Because we were the ACP, our phones were over loaded with everybody calling us to find out what was going on. As soon as we were able to clear our lines we started calling our families to let them know something was up. After about an hour we finally received a message which returned us to normal status. We were later instructed to report in for a special debriefing once we returned to base after alert. At the debriefing it was disclosed that we had tracked on radar an off course soviet missile heading in the general direction of Alaska. I don't recall the briefing being classified, but I don't think the AF volunteered the info to media.
I've never heard or read anything about it since.

I was a junior in HS and we in our 4th period study period when the principal announced it over the intercom.

I left missiles and the AF in 1972 so I wasn't around for that incident. I did find this site of nuclear incidents but all it mentions for the 1973 time frame is when we went to DEFCON 3 during the Yom Kippur war.
On October 24, 1973, when the U.N. sponsored cease fire intended to end the Arab-Israeli war was in force, further fighting stared between Egyptian and Israeli troops in the Sinai desert. U.S. intelligence reports and other sources suggested that the U.S.S.R. was planning to intervene to protect the Egyptians. President Nixon was in the throes of Watergate episode and not available for a conference, so Kissinger and other U.S. officials ordered DEFCON 3. The consequent movements of aircraft and troops were of course observed by Soviet intelligence. The purpose of the alert was not to prepare for war, but to warn the U.S.S.R. not to intervene in the Sinai. However, if the following accident had not been promptly corrected then the Soviet command might have had a more dangerous interpretation.


http://www.nuclearfiles.org/menu/key-is ... ar-war.htm
1

[SAC Killer]

I was still in high school when Kennedy was shot but I can't find anything about the DEFCON changing. It has been to 2 for the Cuban missile crisis and to 3 for 9/11 and the 1973 Yom Kippur war. Of course SAC was at DEFCON 4 for most of the cold war while the rest of the AF was at 5.

I remembered like it happened yesterday, I was in 3rd grade and had just returned to classroom from lunch to click on TV. I was first to alert our teacher whom notified others.

@ wblakeney.
Sounds like you were in missiles about the same time I was, early 70s. I've not come across anyone that remembers an incident occurring in 73-74 time frame when a very high level message was issued to all missile forces. Maybe you recall and can shed more light.
I remembered when we received the message we about shit our shorts. We had always been told in training if we ever received such a message it was as good as gold we'd get our launch orders within the next few minutes. Because we were the ACP, our phones were over loaded with everybody calling us to find out what was going on. As soon as we were able to clear our lines we started calling our families to let them know something was up. After about an hour we finally received a message which returned us to normal status. We were later instructed to report in for a special debriefing once we returned to base after alert. At the debriefing it was disclosed that we had tracked on radar an off course soviet missile heading in the general direction of Alaska. I don't recall the briefing being classified, but I don't think the AF volunteered the info to media.
I've never heard or read anything about it since.

I was on crew but not on alert for that one. I think all the 341 SMW crews got the story later, maybe in a pre-dep update. Some details should not be revealed, but concur that the reason we did it was not classified.

If I recall correctly the tweak was that the Soviets launched two at Kamchatka; unlike us I think they emptied their launchers by launching what was inside (presumably, minus warhead). We might have only been expecting one based on their announcement. We and the Soviets notified each other of activities, to prevent misunderstandings about intentions. And early tracking estimated a possibly different target. Two rather than one plus the rough estimate caused the computers in the mountain to take more notice than usual.

[wblakeney]

I posted this a while back but it falls in the category of false alarms.

This is a story I heard when I got into missiles and the AF in 1969.

In the 60s a newly assigned major at Offut decided he needed to practice sending out messages, you know get that right tone of voice. So he tried a message sending all of SAC to Defcon 2 but there were two problems. First his microphone was live and second he sent a valid message. When someone told him he was live, he got back on and said "Sorry that was me practicing, ignore that Defcon message." Well about half the wings on hearing it was practice went back to Defcon 4. I don't know about the major but a lot of commanders kissed their AF careers good bye.

[SAC Killer]

I posted this a while back but it falls in the category of false alarms.

This is a story I heard when I got into missiles and the AF in 1969.

In the 60s a newly assigned major at Offut decided he needed to practice sending out messages, you know get that right tone of voice. So he tried a message sending all of SAC to Defcon 2 but there were two problems. First his microphone was live and second he sent a valid message. When someone told him he was live, he got back on and said "Sorry that was me practicing, ignore that Defcon message." Well about half the wings on hearing it was practice went back to Defcon 4. I don't know about the major but a lot of commanders kissed their AF careers good bye.

They told us about that in EWO training at 4315 when I went through in the 70s. They used it to emphasize "follow the message, not the chatter." I don't think it was a DEFCON change though. It was something else. I'm not comfortable saying what.

[wblakeney]

They told us about that in EWO training at 4315 when I went through in the 70s. They used it to emphasize "follow the message, not the chatter." I don't think it was a DEFCON change though. It was something else. I'm not comfortable saying what.

Thinking back that may have been were I heard it also.

[wblakeney]

I'm told that even at the lowest volume setting those speakers were still ridiculously loud (and they almost always crackled), and as a result crews covered them with whatever they could. Some inventive crews made duct-tape covers that fit over the speakers, very inventive really.

At Minot in Minuteman I don't remember any problem with the PAS speakers. We did put toliet paper in the SLFCS alarm and used a ruler and code pad to silence the SACCS alarm since they were both right next to the bunk. The printers on both were loud enough you knew when you had a message on either one.

[wally]

I'm told that even at the lowest volume setting those speakers were still ridiculously loud (and they almost always crackled), and as a result crews covered them with whatever they could. Some inventive crews made duct-tape covers that fit over the speakers, very inventive really.

At Minot in Minuteman I don't remember any problem with the PAS speakers. We did put toliet paper in the SLFCS alarm and used a ruler and code pad to silence the SACCS alarm since they were both right next to the bunk. The printers on both were loud enough you knew when you had a message on either one.

The flight commanders at Alpha and Bravo at GFAFB got fired for messing with the PAS speakers in 1989, if I recall correctly. (It happened very shortly before I got there.) The speakers were too loud, and they figured out how to deactivate the volume knobs. Unfortunately, it only worked until the stars aligned to put an out-of-squadron crew into the site after a native crew forgot to turn the volume up after changeover. The foreign crew called in the "malfunctioning" speakers, and maintenance discovered the issue. Game over, and four Article 15s later, the speakers were back up to "normal" volume.

Anyone else remember this story?