QUOTE: Originally posted by johnforster
Question: yardbird78, what were you actually allowed to tell your family about where you worked? From what I've heard, the secrecy level was pretty intense.
Also, what was your actual position/appointment? Thanks for the pics.Cheers,John |
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John My time in the program was at the beginning when security was indeed extremely tight. We were allowed to tell our families that we worked with the SR-71 and what our basic job was, but nothing else. We were required to keep a bag packed at work with uniforms, personal items, etc. We could go in to work on a given day and be doing our normal stuff when the boss comes in, points his finger at certain people and says, "Come with me." We would drop whatever we were doing, grab our mobility bag, get on a bus over to the flight line, get on a KC-135 and depart. No communication of any kind with anyone. Someone at the squadron would call the wives and tell them their husbands had just been deployed. Unknown as to where or for how long. Some of these were just a test and lasted only 1 or 2 days. Some were the real thing and lasted up to 6 months. Excuses such as family birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, vacations, etc were considered irrelevant and made no difference.
Examples of security:
1. If we were off base in the civilian community, we were not allowed to bring up the subject of the SR-71. If someone else brought it up, we were supposed to change the subject. If they persisted, we were required to report them to securtiy and the FBI would investigate. They made it plain to the individuals concerned that discussing the subject was unacceptable and doing so could bring federal criminal charges.
2. One of my first security briefings stated that the fact that the SR-71 was air-refuelable was TOP SECRET. This was pretty stupid because nobody in their right mind in those days made a combat air craft that was not. Common sense and logic were secondary to saying absolutely NOTHING about the program.
3. I was very active in radio control model flying at the time and I had a small camera mounted inside one of my planes. We flew off of an old abandoned parking lot about 5 miles from the flight line. I showed a spectator one day what I had and he reported me to security as taking unauthorized photos of the SR-71. I was called into the Wing Commander's office the next day and had to explain that it was impossible to fly the RC models that far away. It was suggested fairly stongly that I discontinue taking aerial photos anywhere on base.
I was assigned to the 9th Recon Tech Squadron, a subordinate unit of the 9th Strat Recon Wing. My job title was,
Imagery Analysis Technician That covered the obvious of analyzing any visual, infra-red or radar imagery from the bird and also included mission planning.
The mission planning involved a lot of detailed computations as to precisely where it would fly, start and end turn points, start and end refueling tracks, start end acceleration and deceleration points, when the sensors turned on and off , where they were pointed, fuel consumption, electronic defensive equipment operaton, etc. It involved at LOT of work and required several people several days to plan a complete misson. Sometimes we could cheat and used certain segments from other "canned" missions and just piece them together. There was a sign in the area that read, "
You have never been lost until you have been lost at Mach 3 ! That was a good reference as to how accurate the mission planning had to be. A very small mistake in numbers could lead to very large problems in a hurry at that speed.
AH1Wsnake I don't know about the Coast Guard motto, but the words "SEMPER PARATUS were on the original wing shield. I have seen some in later years that had, "9th Strat Recon Wing" on the bottom.
Darwin, O.F.
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