Rise of the Mavericks: The U.S. Air Force Security Service and the Cold War

By Philip Clayton Shackelford

Rise of the Mavericks traces the beginnings and subsequent development of the U.S. Air Force Security Service. Established in 1948 as part of the emerging U.S. national security apparatus, this communications intelligence organization was meant to place the fledgling U.S. Air Force on a competitive footing with its Army and Navy counterparts. As World War II ended and the Cold War began, Air Force leaders understood that an effective cryptologic capability would be crucial for maintaining and enhancing the Air Force as a strategic and decisive component of America‘s national defense. Successfully deploying air-atomic strategy in the event of a future war would require reliable information on the capabilities, intentions—and potential targets—of an opposing force, in particular the Soviet Union. Communications intelligence would be a critical source of this information, and Air Force leaders were adamant that their service not remain dependent on other service structures for this capability. The Air Force Security Service rose to the occasion, quickly establishing itself as one of the preeminent communications intelligence agencies in the United States. Rise of the Mavericks fills the gap in the military and intelligence history literature and further complicates the literature surrounding the history of the NSA, which too often ignores or hastily addresses the contributions and role of the service COMINT agencies during the early Cold War period. The book explains how Air Force Security Service personnel were viewed as mavericks by other U.S. military and government organizations. The airmen lived up to this characterization by creating and developing an independent communications intelligence capability while persistently resisting the controlling efforts of the Armed Forces Security Agency and the National Security Agency.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Naval Institute Press
• Release date: Apr 15, 2023
• ISBN: 9781682478837

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Cover: Rise of the Mavericks, The U.S. Air Force Security Service and the Cold War, 1948–1979 by Philip C. Shackelford

TITLES IN THE SERIES

The Other Space Race: Eisenhower and the Quest for Aerospace Security

An Untaken Road: Strategy, Technology, and the Mobile Intercontinental Ballistic Missile

Strategy: Context and Adaptation from Archidamus to Airpower

Cassandra in Oz: Counterinsurgency and Future War

Cyberspace in Peace and War

Limiting Risk in America’s Wars: Airpower, Asymmetrics, and a New Strategic Paradigm

Always at War: Organizational Culture in Strategic Air Command, 1946–62

How the Few Became the Proud: Crafting the Marine Corps Mystique, 1874–1918

Assured Destruction: Building the Ballistic Missile Culture of the U.S. Air Force

Mars Adapting: Military Change during War

Cyberspace in Peace and War, Second Edition

TRANSFORMING WAR

Paul J. Springer, editor

To ensure success, the conduct of war requires rapid and effective adaptation to changing circumstances. While every conflict involves a degree of flexibility and innovation, there are certain changes that have occurred throughout history that stand out because they fundamentally altered the conduct of warfare. The most prominent of these changes have been labeled Revolutions in Military Affairs (RMAs). These so-called revolutions include technological innovations as well as entirely new approaches to strategy. Revolutionary ideas in military theory, doctrine, and operations have also permanently changed the methods, means, and objectives of warfare.

This series examines fundamental transformations that have occurred in warfare. It places particular emphasis upon RMAs to examine how the development of a new idea or device can alter not only the conduct of wars but their effect upon participants, supporters, and uninvolved parties. The unifying concept of the series is not geographical or temporal; rather, it is the notion of change in conflict and its subsequent impact. This has allowed the incorporation of a wide variety of scholars, approaches, disciplines, and conclusions to be brought under the umbrella of the series. The works include biographies, examinations of transformative events, and analyses of key technological innovations that provide a greater understanding of how and why modern conflict is carried out, and how it may change the battlefields of the future.

RISE OF THE

MAVERICKS

The U.S. AIR FORCE

SECURITY SERVICE and the

COLD WAR, 1948–1979

PHILIP C. SHACKELFORD

Naval Institute Press

Annapolis, Maryland

Naval Institute Press

291 Wood Road

Annapolis, MD 21402

© 2023 by Philip C. Shackelford

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Shackelford, Philip C., author.

Title: Rise of the Mavericks : the U.S. Air Force Security Service and the Cold War / Philip C. Shackelford.

Other titles: U.S. Air Force Security Service and the Cold War

Description: Annapolis, Maryland : Naval Institute Press, [2023] | Series: Transforming war | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2022042963 (print) | LCCN 2022042964 (ebook) | ISBN 9781682478820 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781682478837 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: United States. Air Force. Security Service. | Military intelligence—United States—History—20th century. | Electronic intelligence—United States—History—20th century. | United States. Air Force—Biography. | Aerial reconnaissance, American—History—20th century. | Cold War—Cryptography. | BISAC: HISTORY / Military / Aviation & Space | HISTORY / Modern / 20th Century / General

Classification: LCC UB251.U5 S53 2023 (print) | LCC UB251.U5 (ebook) | DDC 358.4/13432097309045—dc23/eng/20220927

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022042963

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022042964

♾ Print editions meet the requirements of ANSI/NISO z39.48–1992 (Permanence of Paper). Printed in the United States of America.

313029282726252423987654321

First printing

CONTENTS

List of Figures

Foreword

Acknowledgments

List of Acronyms and Abbreviations

Preface

Introduction

1Setting the Stage

2Wartime Experience Informs Postwar Priorities

3Into the Fire: From Demobilization to Reorganization and Service Independence

4From Stalemate to Compromise: Leveraging Loopholes for Autonomy

5Mobilizing a Command

6Flexibility and Maturation: Changing Policy, Missions, and Capabilities

Epilogue

Notes

Bibliography

Index

FIGURES

Fig. 4.1The Air Force Intelligence Apparatus in Relation to the Broader Intelligence Community

Fig. 4.2Breakdown of the Air Force Intelligence Apparatus

Fig. 4.3Breakdown of Intelligence Deficiencies

Fig. 4.4Air Force Intelligence Proposed Budget Breakdown, 1950

FOREWORD

IN THE FULLNESS OF TIME, the individual nations of this world have developed the very best intelligence systems available to them. The leaders of our nation have kept us on the cutting edge of intelligence innovation. A prime example of this is described in this book—the development of the U.S. Air Force Security Service.

Nations have also come to realize that to maintain a strong intelligence commitment is as valuable as maintaining the most modern military equipment. The leaders of the U.S. Air Force considered the Security Service so important that they made it a separate command. The Security Service became operational at just about the start of the Cold War and proved a valuable tool during that time. It has proven to be a remarkable addition to the nation’s intelligence network.

I was a farm boy from north Mississippi and had a very humble upbringing. From August 1952 until August 1956, I was an enlisted man in the Air Force. I spent thirty months of this time in the Security Service, stationed at the Royal Air Force station in Kirknewton, Scotland. My first impression of the base at Kirknewton, with its tar-paper buildings and its rundown condition, was of a most distressing place. Nevertheless, it was home for the next thirty months.

There was talk at that time of the Security Service as an enlisted man’s unit because of the large ratio of enlisted men to officers. Our unit was the 37th Radio Squadron, Mobile (RSM), later changed to the 6952nd RSM. My training and duties were as a teletype-crypto operator. I was very impressed with the mission of Security Service and with the dedication of the airmen. The level of security that surrounded the work impressed me, and I considered the work an important part of American intelligence gathering, especially during the Cold War.

I am also the grandfather of the author of this book, Philip C. Shackelford.

Philip attended Kent State University in Ohio. At some time during his second year, Philip became interested in the Air Force Security Service and told me he was doing research on this subject. I was shocked at the amount of information he had found on the subject in declassified files—shocked because we had been grilled from orientation until discharge never, ever to discuss, with anyone, what we did in the Security Service. I had never discussed our work at USAFSS with anyone, but here was a young college student who knew far more than I had ever had the opportunity to learn.

Philip completed master’s degrees in both history and library science at Kent State, and he wrote his master’s thesis on the Security Service. He has wanted to write this book since his college days and finally has accomplished it. He has spent a lot of time digging out the information contained in this book, and he has personally interviewed a number of people who were actually involved in the Security Service. Exploring the mix of all the intelligence units of our nation makes this book a fairly technical one. It requires the reader’s full attention but is well worth the effort. Philip has done an excellent job in telling the story of the Security Service, and it needed to be told.

—THOMAS W. SHACKELFORD

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

FIRST OF ALL, I THANK GOD for giving me this opportunity and for allowing this project to happen. I have been and continue to be so very blessed—something I hope never to take for granted.

I did not write this book alone.

Every author knows that such a concept is ridiculous—no book is ever written without the selfless dedication and encouragement of many individuals—and in this I have been so very blessed indeed. To my family—Phil, Paula, and Joseph: I could not have pulled this off without all your enthusiastic support and encouragement. Y’all are the best cheerleaders in the world and deserve so much credit for helping bring this project to fruition. To Momma, especially—this book is almost as much yours as it is mine, and it’s finally done! All of you—thank you so much for reading drafts, asking about progress, and patiently listening to me go down the rabbit hole about some obscure historical development or another. Each of you shared in the stresses as well as the celebrations of this project, and I thank you all so much. Y’all are the best, and I love you all so very much!

Thank you to Dr. Kevin Adams, Dr. Kenneth Bindas, Dr. Rodney Bohac, Dr. Kyriakos Nalmpantis, Dr. Timothy Scarnecchia, Dr. Elizabeth Smith-Pryor, and Dr. Clarence Wunderlin for indulging the curiosity and persistent visits of a young history student, eager to learn and make connections. Your classes and advice shaped my experience as a student and historian, and I am grateful for the time and patience you all invested in me. Thanks as well to Dr. Adams and Dr. Wunderlin for serving on my thesis committee. Your service, advice, and guidance are much appreciated.

To my thesis advisor, Dr. Mary Ann Heiss, thank you for your guidance, wisdom, and tough love. Your instruction helped me not only to complete the program successfully but also to become a better historian, and I thank you.

I must also thank Kay Dennis and Carla Weber, who have all the answers! You both have been instrumental in creating a positive and supportive environment for students in the history program, and your friendliness, encouragement, and assistance have meant so much to so many!

For the members of my cohort in the MA program—thank you all for such a great time and for making Bowman 205 a home away from home! We made studying history way too much fun: I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did.

To Dr. Michele Curran Cornell, thank you for being my academic big sister! Your friendly support and advice have been valuable and encouraging, and I appreciate them so much.

Dr. Paul Springer—thank you for graciously taking a young grad student under your wing, providing welcome advice and encouragement as he attended his first major conference, and for arranging access to a nearby Air Force base for a visit to the archives. Your friendly support over the past few years has meant much, your advice has shaped my growth as a historian and as an author, and your effort has facilitated the process of producing this book. I thank you, and I hope the result is a worthy addition to your series.

Thank you to Maranda Gilmore, Tammy Horton, Sylvester Jackson, and everyone else at the Air Force Historical Research Agency for your dedicated assistance: answering emails, pulling records, and pointing me in the right direction. You all are doing incredibly important work, and as both a historian and a librarian with an archives background, I deeply appreciate and respect what you do each and every day. Keep up the fight!

To Dr. Mary Curry at the National Security Archive and Kara Robinson at Kent State University Libraries—thank you both for your help in tracking down resources and identifying valuable research documents. Your service and dedication are indispensable to countless students and researchers. Y’all are awesome.

To Eric van Slander at the National Archives, College Park—thank you for expertly assisting with my first trip to College Park and in various inquiries before and since—talented archivists like yourself make the world go around!

To Mary Hellner at ProQuest—thank you for your advice and assistance regarding the Digital National Security Archive database. This researcher is truly indebted to your kindness!

Adam Kane—thank you for sharing a few pieces of free advice with me back in 2017 that directly impacted this book—taking the narrative up to 1979 was definitely the right call, and I agree that putting people in it makes a story like this come alive. Thank you—and so many others—for your openness and kindness in engaging with students and early-career scholars in the military history discipline. It makes a huge difference and is crucial for encouraging a new generation of historians to join the profession.

Thank you to everyone—both those whom I have had the honor of meeting as well as those I haven’t yet—in the Society for Military History. Each conference is an experience I treasure, each conversation is an opportunity to learn, and the SMH Twitter community is awesome. Thank you for making the society and the profession home for young historians, and please keep up the good work.

To Khalilah Hayes, Alisha Miles, and Alexandra Aldridge at the Air University Library and Muir S. Fairchild Research Information Center, thank you for the VIP reception and helping me locate valuable resources. Librarians everywhere unite!

To Crystal Gates—thank you for generously reading earlier drafts of this book and providing much-needed feedback. Your leadership in the Arkansas Library Association has been exemplary, and your friendship has been and continues to be a blessing.

To Dr. Mickey Best—thank you for taking a chance on a young librarian, for entrusting me with important responsibility, believing in my vision for the SouthArk Library, and providing a supportive environment for me to learn and grow professionally. When I was hired, you agreed to allow me to continue my academic research and attend important conferences, even though these would likely be beyond the scope of my position. That freedom has enabled the completion of this book, and I thank you.

Thank you to Dr. Bentley Wallace for revitalizing the culture of South Arkansas Community College and reawakening the aspirations of SouthArk personnel. Your leadership has made our college a better place, and I appreciate the opportunity to learn from you and be part of the journey as the SouthArk family explores new horizons. Thank you also for being a friend to the SouthArk Library. Your support of our initiatives and the work we do has meant much to our team, and we appreciate it.

To Dr. Stephanie Tully-Dartez, thank you for being a fantastic supervisor and ally to the SouthArk Library. Thank you for believing in our work, advocating on our behalf, and helping us explore valuable opportunities. I have grown through your leadership and coaching, learning to become a better leader and administrator. Thank you.

I would be remiss if I did not take this opportunity to offer special thanks to the fantastic crew at the SouthArk Library, with whom I have had the honor and pleasure of working over the past several years. To Lauri Wilson, Tiffany Trefry, Cynthia Arnold, Mindy Farley, Susan Baxley, Joy DuPont, and Caitlyn Lynn—thank you all for being awesome! The dedication, creativity, selflessness, and empathy you all bring to the table have made the SouthArk Library what it is today; you all have been invaluable assets to our students, faculty, and staff. The SouthArk Library is blessed with the best crew in the business!

Also, special thanks to Lauri, Joy, and Cait for generously reading earlier drafts of this book!

Finally, this book is dedicated to Thomas W. Shackelford Jr., Airman First Class, and to the silent warriors of the U.S. Air Force Security Service. Shack—your stories and letters set me on this path, and I consider myself so very blessed to have the privilege of learning from you, both about the Security Service and your experience in it but also about life in general. I love you and thank you so very much!

ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS

PREFACE

THE RAIN FELL SLOWLY.

The Mississippi clay was already saturated, and the trunks of the pecan trees had turned a dark, moist brown. A cool breeze whispered by now and then, rustling through the dormant hydrangeas and fading yellow bells, causing the wind chime on the front porch to yawn a familiar tune. Thunder rolled in distant rumbles. Dark brown and yellow oak leaves, remnants of the previous autumn, grew damp with the rain and plastered themselves against glass doors, windows, vehicles—anything with a smooth surface. For my brother and me, a rainy spring day at our grandparents’ house meant plenty of playing, reading, and perhaps a story. With the enormous vegetable garden quickly turning into a pool of red-clay mud, however, we boys were not the only ones confined indoors by the weather. Our grandfather, unable to plant or work outside, was also trapped inside by the rain.

Obsessed with all things military as I was at the time, many years ago, I had often asked my grandfather about his time in the Air Force, eagerly anticipating tales of daring raids, dogfights high in the clouds, and other explosive delights. Together my grandfather and I had reenacted thousands of important battles with my green plastic soldiers—an army reinforced by occasional troop transfers from the toy aisle. Most of these afternoons were spent teaching my men tactical strategy, learning the drill myself, and carrying out shrapnel-filled rubber-band battles on the floor with my soldiers, engagements no one survived. Occasionally, however, as on this particularly dreary afternoon, I would feel the need to rest my trigger finger for a bit and would ask my grandfather again about his time in the Air Force. Little did I know then how significant these stories actually were.

Well, you have to realize, he would begin, that I wasn’t involved in any actual fighting. I was involved more in reconnaissance and intelligence-type work, listening in on radio communications and so forth. I was in what they called the Air Force Security Service, and when I was stationed in Scotland, we would sit there with our headphones on and intercept radio traffic coming out of Russia.

So would begin a period of such reminiscing, never long enough, punctuated liberally by my eager questions. If we were really lucky my grandfather might pull out his carousel slide projector and regale us with the hundreds of pictures he had taken with his thirty-five-millimeter camera while stationed overseas, each accompanied with another story or sidebar.

While I was definitely interested then, I became even more intrigued by the elusive organization that was the Air Force Security Service as I went through college. Early efforts to learn more were frustrated by a dearth of information that would confirm what the Security Service was or did. Slowly I began to realize that the U.S. Air Force Security Service was not just another military unit but was in fact a highly specialized intelligence-gathering arm of the Air Force responsible for one of the most storied missions of the early Cold War.

It can be difficult for us now, and especially for the younger members of our communities, to comprehend fully the pervasive uncertainty, foreboding, and dangers present during that conflict. The Cold War can feel distant, cinematic, a historical moment known more by reputation than by any personal connection. For entire generations of Americans, however, the Cold War was the defining struggle of a lifetime—a contest for survival that affected almost every aspect of life for the second half of the twentieth century. Some may suspect that this is hyperbole. But consider that millions of children underwent bomb-raid drills at school, that American universities were transformed into research partners to support the military-industrial pursuit of national security, that the interstate highway system was born of the need to transport military personnel and equipment efficiently across the nation, and that even college football became emblematic of American national priorities during the Cold War: the statement becomes more convincing.¹

The world of Cold War intelligence, even more than the international conflict itself, is vividly captured in our imaginations, more in terms of representations in popular culture than of actual events. Lack of declassified information provides an obvious opportunity for works of fiction to supply glimpses behind the veil of secrecy that facts are unavailable to provide. However, these conditions are changing, if slowly. Government agencies have begun to release more documentation detailing World War II and Cold War espionage activities, and intelligence history is maturing into a robust academic discipline all its own, and to positive reception. Both scholarly and popular authors exploring intelligence topics continue to find a hungry audience that ravenously devours their works.

It must be a bizarre experience for former intelligence personnel. Many of the secrets they labored so long to protect are now finding their way out into the sunlight, to emerge blinking, wondering what year it is. The activities in which these individuals were involved—tightly controlled, very sensitive, and often dangerous—are now openly discussed in countless volumes lining the shelves at every bookstore. Information these personnel held private even from their families is now described, sometimes in considerable detail, for all the world to see. The public appetite for such content can hardly come as a surprise—but still, it must be strange, and I wonder what they think.

Personally, I am incredibly grateful to a special group of these silent warriors, including my grandfather, for taking me under their collective wing and accommodating my curiosity and persistent exploration into their past secret lives. Many were wary, to be sure, and remained guarded, reluctant to discuss too many specific details. But this reticence is understandable, even admirable. Unmoored from official chains of communication, former intelligence personnel have precious little assistance in making what must be a monumental choice—whether to open up, even slightly, about responsibilities they once swore to protect or to remain steadfastly committed to lives of silence.

I am humbled and honored that several of these servicemen made that choice on my behalf. Not only that, they also welcomed me into their networks and reunions, answered my letters and emails, and provided memories that represented valuable research data for me—and all without knowing me personally or understanding how I might represent them and their service. I will not mention these individuals here by name—you know who you are—and I hope it is clear