Saglek, Labrador

1965 – Historical Report – USAF Historical Division


Historical Record
924th AC&W Squadron
Saglek, Labrador
1 July 1965 to 30 September 1965

Section I

REQUIRED DATA

  1. Unit and Location

924th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
APO New York 09439

  1. Name and Grade of Commander

Richard F Solomon, Lt. Colonel

  1. Chain of Command (Superior Echelons)
  2. Goose Air Defence Sector
    26th Air Division
    Air Defense Command

  • Subordinate Units (Down to and including squadrons)
  • None

  • Mission (Give authority and brief statement of primary mission)
  • The mission of the 924th ACW Squadron is to conduct Air Defense operations within assigned area of responsibility; support the Melville NORAD Control Center; function as a Surveillance Station with limited control capability in the Air Defense System; operate and maintain the air strip at Saglek Bay, Canada.
    GADS Regulation – 23-7

  • Personnel
  •  

     

    Officers

    Airmen

    Civilians

    Total

     

     

    Authorized

    7

    91

    31

    129

     

     

    Assigned

    7

    75

    28

    112

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Equipment (Give official nomenclature and quantity of mission-type equipment)
  • 1 AN/FPS-87A Radar; 2 AN/UPX-14 Radar; 1 AN/GPS-T2A Radar Trainer; 1 AN/UPA-35 Indicator, Video; 3 AN/GRC-27 Radio (UHF); 3 AN/GRR-7 Receiver (UHF); 2 AN/GRT-3 Transmitter (UHF); 1 GTA-6 Telephone System.

    Section II

    COMMENTARY

    Command, Personnel and Administration:

    After Major Ralph P Borgeson departed for his new assignment on 18 June, Captain Warren J Novak assumed command until the arrival of the new commander. Lt. Colonel Richard Solomon arrived 13 July after an indoctrination course at Goose ADS. He brought with him several new policies and procedures which were immediately put into effect. Regular weekly staff meetings were started which are attended by all the Branch Chiefs, or their representatives when the Branch Chief cannot attend. This weekly meeting made it possible for the Branches to co-ordinate closer and to relate to each other and the commander their problems and accomplishments. The squadron was also reorganized into Branches and a new Branch was established. This Branch was the Information and Recreational Services Branch. The first project for the new commander was to prepare for a visit from the new commander of the Goose Air Defense Sector. General Burke (then Colonel) arrived on 16 July accompanied by Lt. Colonel Brink GADS Chief of Maintenance. The visitors were given a briefing by Lt. Col. Solomon and the staff which was followed by a tour of the site. 1st Lt. Gerald H Grewe, Administrative Services Officer departed Saglek on 23 August for his new assignment at McGuire AFB, New Jersey. His replacement, 1st Lt. William N Stowe, did not arrive at Saglek until 9 September. Among some of the Administrative Service’s projects were the publishing of a squadron organization and function booklet, the publishing of ten new squadron regulations, and the activation of a daily bulletin. The first DB was published 2 August. A staff assistance visit was conducted by a team from GADS headquarters between 10 and 13 August. The areas covered in the inspection were: Administration, civil engineering, supply personnel, transportation, operations maintenance and air field and facility safety. The visit proved to be of great value and most of the discrepancies found have been corrected.

    Operations:

    During this reporting period 1st Lt. John L Wilson, operations officer completed his tour of duty and was reassigned to Otis AFB, Mass. Lt Wilson was replaced by 1st Lt. Leroy O Blondeau as operations officer. On July 22 1965, a SAC B-52, east of Saglek, declared an in flight emergency because of a leak in the oxygen system. The aircraft commander requested flight follow and asked if he could descend to a lower altitude so that he could check out the tail section of the aircraft and find the leak. The men on duty responded to the situation in a professional manner, alerting all agencies concerned and relaying information to the aircraft, and preparing for any further difficulty. After finding the oxygen leak in the tail section as suspected, and repairing it, the aircraft commander requested clearance to climb to altitude, joining with another B-52 and proceeded on with their mission after thanking operations for their assistance. In September an Illustrator was assigned and for the first time in eight months the operations branch was 100% manned. This branch participated in twenty-three missions, ten of which were live, six of the ten were for ECM training only. The six Electronic Counter Measure Missions proved very valuable to the operations training program. Also during this same period, operations has been conducting supplemental training on ECM using films and lectures provided by the squadrons ECM officer.

    Supply and Services:

    During the quarter, Saglek Air Station received a total of 25 aircraft which brought in 221 personnel, 38,195 pounds of cargo, 7,591 pounds of mail and 23,321 pounds of produce. On the return flights to Goose AB 162 passengers, 1,766 pounds of cargo and 2,814 pounds of mail were shipped out.

    Key Personnel:

    The following is a list of key personnel as of 30 September 1965:

    (see matrix at end of this report)

    Three officers were transferred during the period. Lt. Robert Y Yager, C&E Branch Chief, departed on 13 September at which time Lt. Boldman temporarily assumed his duties. Captain Malinski arrived 20 September and permanently took the duties of C&E Branch Chief. Lt. Crewe, Administrative Services Officer, left on 23 August and Lt. Wilson, Operations Officer left on 20 September. They were replaced by Lt. Stowe and Lt. Blondeau respectively, who both arrived 9 September. Sergeant Biagiarelli arrived 8 July and was the first, First Sergeant assigned in almost a year.

    Awards and Decorations:

    S/Sgt. Allen C Emory, NCOIC of the Supply and Services Branch, was presented with the Air Force Commendation Medal at the September Commanders Call. He received this award for setting up and operating a material control section while assigned to the 1926 Communications Squadron, Warner-Robbins AFB, GA.

    Prepared By: Donald E Boldman, 1st Lt., USAF

    Typed Name and Grade of Commander

    Richard F Solomon, Lt. Col., USAF

    Signature

     

    Key Personnel

    Lt. Colonel Richard F Solomon

    Commander

    Captain Warren J Novak

    Chief, Supply and Services Branch

    Captain William L Malinski

    Chief, Communications and Electronics Branch

    Lt. Robert B Anderson

    Chief, Civil Engineering Branch

    Lt. Leroy O Blondeau

    Chief, Operations Branch

    Lt. Donald E Boldman

    Chief, Information and Recreation Branch

    Lt. William N Stowe

    Chief, Administrative Services Branch

    CM/Sgt. EM Biagiarelli

    First Sergeant