Lake Charles Air Force Station (ADC ID: TM-194, NORAD ID: Z-248) is a closed

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Si ...

General Surveillance Radar station. It is located southeast of

Lake Charles, Louisiana Lake Charles (French: ''Lac Charles'') is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the parish seat of Calcasieu Parish, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Founded in 1861 in Calcas ...

. It was closed in 1995 by the Air Force, and turned over to the

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic ...

(FAA). Today the site is part of the

Joint Surveillance System The Joint Surveillance System (JSS) is a joint United States Air Force and Federal Aviation Administration system for the atmospheric air defense of North America. It replaced the Semi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) system in 1983. Overvi ...

(JSS), designated by

NORAD North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD ), known until March 1981 as the North American Air Defense Command, is a combined organization of the United States and Canada that provides aerospace warning, air sovereignty, and protection ...

Eastern Air Defense Sector The Eastern Air Defense Sector (EADS) is a United States Air Force unit of Air Combat Command (ACC), permanently assigned to the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). A joint, bi-national military organization, EADS is composed of U ...

(EADS) Ground Equipment Facility J-14.

History

Lake Charles Air Force Station was, actually, two different facilities that shared the same location, active in two different eras. The first Lake Charles Air Force Station (ADC ID: TM-194) was as part of the Phase III of the

Air Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command of the United States Air Force, responsible for continental air defense. It was activated in 1968 and disbanded in 1980. Its predecessor, Air Defense Command, was established in 1946, briefly inac ...

Mobile Radar program. On October 20, 1953 ADC requested a third phase of twenty-five radar sites be constructed. The 812th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron was assigned to the new base on 30 April 1957 by the

33d Air Division The 33rd Air Division (33d AD) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Command, assigned to First Air Force, being stationed at Fort Lee Air Force Station, Virginia. It was inactivated on ...

. In 1958 the 812th AC&W Squadron activated

AN/FPS-3 The AN/FPS-20 was a widely used L band early warning and ground-controlled interception radar system employed by the United States Air Force Air Defense Command, the NORAD Pinetree Line in Canada, the USAF CONAD in the continental United States ...

A and

AN/FPS-6 The AN/FPS-6 Radar was a long-range height finding radar used by the United States Air Force's Air Defense Command. The AN/FPS-6 radar was introduced into service in the late 1950s and served as the principal height-finder radar for the United Stat ...

radars, and initially the station functioned as a Ground-Control Intercept (GCI) and warning station. As a GCI station, the squadron's role was to guide interceptor aircraft toward unidentified intruders picked up on the unit's radar scopes. On 1 September 1961, the 812th was inactivated, and the Lake Charles site was converted into a gap-filler radar site (M-125D) for England AFB, LA, operating an

AN/FPS-18 The AN/FPS-18 was a medium-range search Radar used by the United States Air Force Air Defense Command.http://www.bendixradiofoundation.com/documents/Bendix%20Radio%20Radar%20History.pdf This medium-range search radar was designed and built by Bend ...

. The FPS-18 inactivated on 30 June 1963 along with the

653d Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron The 653d Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the Oklahoma City Air Defense Sector, Air Defense Command, stationed at England Air Force Base, Louisiana. It was inactivated on 1 ...

at England Air Force Base. The second Lake Charles Air Force Station was opened in 1972 when

Tactical Air Command Tactical Air Command (TAC) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 and headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. It was inactivated on 1 Ju ...

(TAC) constructed five new buildings at the former Lake Charles (TM-194) site. The new station was designated with NORAD ID Z-248. TAC set up an

AN/TPS-43 The AN/TPS-43 is a transportable air search 3D radar produced in the United States originally by Westinghouse Defense and Electronic Division, which was later purchased by Northrop-Grumman. It is used primarily for early warning and tactical co ...

radar on the newly constructed search tower. Eventually,

Aerospace Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command of the United States Air Force, responsible for continental air defense. It was activated in 1968 and disbanded in 1980. Its predecessor, Air Defense Command, was established in 1946, briefly ina ...

assumed control of the site, and placed

AN/FPS-93 The AN/FPS-20 was a widely used L band early warning and ground-controlled interception radar system employed by the United States Air Force Air Defense Command, the NORAD Pinetree Line in Canada, the USAF CONAD in the continental United Stat ...

and

radars at the site. These radars were operated as Operating Location F of the Houston-based

630th Radar Squadron 63 may refer to: * 63 (number) * one of the years 63 BC, AD 63, 1963, 2063 * +63, telephone country code in the Philippines * Flight 63 (disambiguation) * ''63'' (album), by Tree63 * ''63'' (mixtape), by Kool A.D. * "Sixty Three", a song by Ka ...

during 1972 and 1973. Control of the site was reassigned to the

634th Radar Squadron The 634th Radar Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 20th Air Division, Aerospace Defense Command, stationed at Lake Charles Air Force Station, Louisiana. It was inactivated on 1 July 1974. History Th ...

on 1 January 1973, and inactivated on 1 July 1974. After the 634th RADS inactivated, activities were assumed by Operating Location D of the

Tyndall AFB Tyndall Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base located east of Panama City, Florida. The base was named in honor of World War I pilot 1st Lt. Frank Benjamin Tyndall. The base operating unit and host wing is the 325th Fighter Wing (325 ...

-based

678th Air Defense Group The 678th Air Defense Group is a disbanded United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the 20th Air Division of Air Defense Command (ADC) at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. The group was formed in 1970 when ADC expanded ...

as part of the Southeast Air Defense Sector (SEADS). The site continued operations over the next two decades with approximated twenty Air Force and civilian personnel with the 678th ADG tracking aircraft attempting to illegally enter the country. The final radars were an

AN/FPS-91 The AN/FPS-20 was a widely used L band early warning and ground-controlled interception radar system employed by the United States Air Force Air Defense Command, the NORAD Pinetree Line in Canada, the USAF CONAD in the continental United States, a ...

A search radar and an

AN/FPS-116 The AN/FPS-6 Radar was a long-range height finding radar used by the United States Air Force's Air Defense Command. The AN/FPS-6 radar was introduced into service in the late 1950s and served as the principal height-finder radar for the United Stat ...

height-finder radar (retired c. 1988). Lake Charles AFS closed for good on 30 September 1995, being replaced by a new FAA

ARSR-4 The Air Route Surveillance Radar is used by the United States Air Force and the Federal Aviation Administration to control airspace within and around the borders of the United States. The ARSR-4 is the FAA's most recent (late 1980s, early 1990s ...

(JSS) site on the northwest side of the city of Lake Charles. Today, for the first radar Site TM-194, the original Operations Building and the Power Plant are still extant on the west end of the site, and the original HQ Building is still extant near the site entrance. A private residence occupies the site of the original GAG Radio facility, later gap-filler annex (M-125D), on the east end of the site. Nothing visible remains of the site's second incarnation, Z-248. The current owner of the site is

McNeese State University McNeese State University is a public university in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Founded in 1939 as Lake Charles Junior College, it was renamed McNeese Junior College after John McNeese, an early local educator. The present name was adopted in 1970. M ...

References

* A Handbook of Aerospace Defense Organization 1946 - 1980, by Lloyd H. Cornett and Mildred W. Johnson, Office of History, Aerospace Defense Center, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado * Winkler, David F. (1997), Searching the skies: the legacy of the United States Cold War defense radar program. Prepared for United States Air Force Headquarters Air Combat Command.
Information for Lake Charles AFS, LA
{{Aerospace Defense Command, state=collapsed Installations of the United States Air Force in Louisiana Radar stations of the United States Air Force Aerospace Defense Command military installations 1957 establishments in Louisiana 1995 disestablishments in Louisiana Military installations established in 1957 Military installations closed in 1995

History

See also

References