Bethel Air Force Station
Encyclopedia
Bethel Air Force Station (AAC ID: F-21) is a closed United States Air Force
General Surveillance Radar station. It was located 402 miles (647 km) west of Anchorage, Alaska
.
on Alaska.
A radar site was initially activated in September 1951 at Bethel, Alaska
, manned by Federalized Alaska Air National Guard
smen and equipped with a World War II
AN/TPS-1B radar as a result of the Korean War
and the threat of a communist attack on Alaska. The guardsmen were designated as Detachment "C-3", 626th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron, and commanded by the 10th Air Division at Fire Island AFS near Anchorage. The guardsmen were returned to state control in March, 1952 and the provisional station was closed.
Plans were made for a permanent radar site beginning in late 1956. In 1957, acreage was acquired approximately 5 miles west of Bethel, Alaska
for construction of the station. Using the existing port facilities at Bethel on the Kuskokwim River
, Towed barges were able to land construction equipment and material at the town, which was transported along a gravel road to the construction site. In addition, an airstrip 60°46′50"N 161°50′09"W was constructed near the site, about halfway between the station and Bethel, allowing cargo transports and personnel to fly into and out of the area.
The station and radar site was constructed on a flat area just to the west of some hills. The buildings were, except for the civil engineering building connected by heated hallways. As a result, personnel stationed there, with only very few exceptions, were able to wear "summer" uniforms year round, unless they had a need to go outside during the winter season. The coverings of the station's three radar towers were heated from within to keep the covering from becoming brittle from extreme cold, and thus subject to being damaged or destroyed by high winds. Tours at the station were limited to one year because of the psychological strain and physical hardships.
The 713th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron operated AN/FPS-8, AN/FPS-4, AN/FPS-6, and AN/FPS-6B radars. As a surveillance station, its mission was to monitor the airspace for aircraft activity and provide information 24/7 to the air defense Direction Center at Fire Island AFS near Anchorage, where it was analyzed to determine range, direction altitude speed and whether or not aircraft were friendly or hostile.
The Alaskan Air Command, after investigating various options, constructed a White Alice Communications System
communications site at the station, operated by the Air Force Communications Service (AFCS). The Bethel site 60°46′52"N 161°53′10"W was activated in 1958.
Bethel Air Force Station was very expensive to maintain, and was inactivated due to budget reductions on 15 May 1963, its mission being taken over by other AAC surveillance radar sites with upgraded and more capable equipment.
Today the site remains abandoned and deteriorating. Aerial imagery clearly shows abandoned buildings, radar towers and communications antennas, all in a highly deteriorated state.
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
General Surveillance Radar station. It was located 402 miles (647 km) west of Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage is a unified home rule municipality in the southcentral part of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the northernmost major city in the United States...
.
History
Bethel AFS was a continental defense radar station constructed to provide the United States Air Force early warning of an attack by the Soviet UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
on Alaska.
A radar site was initially activated in September 1951 at Bethel, Alaska
Bethel, Alaska
Bethel is a city located near the west coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, west of Anchorage. Accessible only by air and river, Bethel is the main port on the Kuskokwim River and is an administrative and transportation hub for the 56 villages in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.Bethel is the largest...
, manned by Federalized Alaska Air National Guard
Alaska Air National Guard
The Alaska Air National Guard is the component of the United States Air National Guard operating within the state of Alaska.-Overview:Alaska Air National Guard units are trained and equipped as part of the United States Air Force. The same ranks and insignia are used and National Guardsmen are...
smen and equipped with a World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
AN/TPS-1B radar as a result of the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
and the threat of a communist attack on Alaska. The guardsmen were designated as Detachment "C-3", 626th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron, and commanded by the 10th Air Division at Fire Island AFS near Anchorage. The guardsmen were returned to state control in March, 1952 and the provisional station was closed.
Plans were made for a permanent radar site beginning in late 1956. In 1957, acreage was acquired approximately 5 miles west of Bethel, Alaska
Bethel, Alaska
Bethel is a city located near the west coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, west of Anchorage. Accessible only by air and river, Bethel is the main port on the Kuskokwim River and is an administrative and transportation hub for the 56 villages in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.Bethel is the largest...
for construction of the station. Using the existing port facilities at Bethel on the Kuskokwim River
Kuskokwim River
The Kuskokwim River or Kusko River is a river, long, in Southwest Alaska in the United States. It is the ninth largest river in the United States by average discharge volume at its mouth and seventeenth largest by basin drainage area.The river provides the principal drainage for an area of the...
, Towed barges were able to land construction equipment and material at the town, which was transported along a gravel road to the construction site. In addition, an airstrip 60°46′50"N 161°50′09"W was constructed near the site, about halfway between the station and Bethel, allowing cargo transports and personnel to fly into and out of the area.
The station and radar site was constructed on a flat area just to the west of some hills. The buildings were, except for the civil engineering building connected by heated hallways. As a result, personnel stationed there, with only very few exceptions, were able to wear "summer" uniforms year round, unless they had a need to go outside during the winter season. The coverings of the station's three radar towers were heated from within to keep the covering from becoming brittle from extreme cold, and thus subject to being damaged or destroyed by high winds. Tours at the station were limited to one year because of the psychological strain and physical hardships.
The 713th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron operated AN/FPS-8, AN/FPS-4, AN/FPS-6, and AN/FPS-6B radars. As a surveillance station, its mission was to monitor the airspace for aircraft activity and provide information 24/7 to the air defense Direction Center at Fire Island AFS near Anchorage, where it was analyzed to determine range, direction altitude speed and whether or not aircraft were friendly or hostile.
The Alaskan Air Command, after investigating various options, constructed a White Alice Communications System
White Alice Communications System
The White Alice Communications System was a United States Air Force telecommunication link system constructed in Alaska during the cold war. It featured tropospheric scatter links and line-of-sight microwave radio links...
communications site at the station, operated by the Air Force Communications Service (AFCS). The Bethel site 60°46′52"N 161°53′10"W was activated in 1958.
Bethel Air Force Station was very expensive to maintain, and was inactivated due to budget reductions on 15 May 1963, its mission being taken over by other AAC surveillance radar sites with upgraded and more capable equipment.
Today the site remains abandoned and deteriorating. Aerial imagery clearly shows abandoned buildings, radar towers and communications antennas, all in a highly deteriorated state.
Air Force units and assignments
Units
- 713th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
- Activated at Elmendorf AFB on 8 February 1957
- Moved to Bethel AFS on 1 June 1957
- Discontinued and inactivated on 1 October 1963
Assignments
- 5039th Air Base Wing, 8 February 1957
- 5039th Aircraft Control & Warning Group (later 5040th Aircraft Control and Warning Group), 1 June 1957
- 10th Air Division, 1 November 1959
- 5070th Air Defense Wing5070th Air Defense WingThe 5070th Air Defense Wing is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the Alaskan Air Command, being stationed at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska. It was inactivated on 1 October 1961-Lineage:...
, 1 August 1960 - Alaskan Air CommandAlaskan Air CommandAlaskan Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command. Established in 1945 under the United States Army Air Forces, its mission was to organize and administer the air defense system of Alaska, exercise direct control of all active measures, and coordinate all passive means of...
, 1 November 1961 - 1 October 1963