High Frontier: The U. S. Air Force and the Military Space Program

by Curtis Peebles, U.S. Air Force

The United States military space program began at the end of World War II when a few people realized that space flight was now achievable and could be employed to military advantage. Science and technology in the form of advanced radar, jet propulsion, ballistic rockets such as the V-2, and nuclear energy had dramatically altered the nature of war. Army Air Forces Commanding General Henry H. 'Hap' Arnold wrote in November 1945 that a space ship 'is all but practicable today' and could be built 'within the foreseeable future.' The following month the Air Force Scientific Advisory Group concluded that long- range rockets were technically feasible and that satellites were a 'definite possibility.' The U.S. Navy also expressed interest in space flight. In November 1945 the Navy Bureau of Aeronautics produced a satellite report, and, on March 7, 1946 proposed an interservice space program. The idea was presented to the joint Army-Navy Aeronautical Board on April 9. Major General Curtis E. LeMay, the Director of Research and Development for the Army Air Forces, however, viewed space operations as an exclusive Air Force domain, and he ordered an independent study.To conduct this study, the Army Air Forces turned to Project RAND, then a section of Douglas Aircraft Company, established to provide long-range technical advice to the service. The resultant study, "Preliminary Design of an Experimental World-Circling Spaceship" was issued on May 2, 1946, and embraced a wide-ranging examination of satellite technology. A "satellite offers an observation aircraft which cannot be brought down by an enemy ... ," the report observed. Other military roles included the "spotting of the points of impact of bombs launched by us, and the observation of weather conditions over enemy territory." The report also mentioned satellites used for communications, and addressed other, as yet unforeseen potentialities.Partial Contents Space Missions DefinedEarly Aerial ReconnaissanceMilitary Space Missions Identified, Satellite Work BegunForging a National Space PolicyOrganizing America's Space EffortProject CORONAThe National Reconnaissance OfficeManned Military Space FlightThe X-20 Dyna-SoarThe Manned Orbiting LaboratoryMilitary Space Shuttle Plans and OperationsMilitary Space Operations, 1958-1991Missile Early Warning - MIDAS to DSPThe SPADATS/SSN Tracking NetworkNuclear Detection - Vela Hotel to IONDSCommunication Satellites - IDCSP to MilstarMeteorological Satellites - DMSPNavigation Satellites - The Navstar Global Positioning SystemAnti-Satellite Systems - SAINT, 437, and the F-15 ASAT '"The Strategic Defense InitiativeLaunch Operations, Ground Control, Organization and ManagementThe Founding of Space CommandDesert Storm, the Air Force and the Military Space Program in a Changing World91 pages; dozens of photos, drawings, technical illustrations and charts.This is a Print Replica that maintains the formatting and layout of the original edition and offers many of the advantages of standard Kindle books.

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Published October 11, 2015