Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center

Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center
Andros, Bahamas
Aerial view in 1974
AUTEC Insignia
Coordinates	24°42′20″N 77°46′9″W / 24.70556°N 77.76917°W / 24.70556; -77.76917
Type	Military base
Site information
Controlled by	United States Navy
Site history
In use	1966–present

The United States Navy's Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center (AUTEC) is a laboratory that performs integrated three-dimensional hydrospace/aerospace trajectory measurements covering the entire spectrum of undersea simulated warfare – calibration, classifications, detection, and destruction. Its mission is to assist in establishing and maintaining naval ability of the United States through testing, evaluation, and underwater research.

Background

The typical task performed at AUTEC is testing and certifying the proficiency of U.S. Navy

During the 1940s and 1950s, the U.S. Navy's need for a deep water test facility became so apparent that in 1958 the Chief of Naval Operations established an advisory group to determine the location and specifications for testing underwater vehicles, weapons, and weapon systems. As a result of the extensive studies of this group, the United States Secretary of the Navy in November 1959 directed establishment of the Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center (AUTEC) under the Bureau of Ships (now Naval Sea Systems Command) to provide a deep water test and evaluation facility for making underwater acoustic measurement, testing sonar, and providing accurate underwater, surface and air tracking data on ships and weapons in support of the U.S. Navy's antisubmarine and undersea research and development programs.

The area chosen for AUTEC was the

Construction of the Navy's Main Base and the downrange tracking sites on Andros Island began in March 1964, and the initial cadre of officers and men arrived by U.S. Navy LST in August 1965. In October of that year, Commander G. P Barney arrived as the first permanent Officer-in-charge, Andros Ranges, and the official dedication of AUTEC was held on 14 April 1966. The complex electronics installation was accomplished from fall of 1965 to fall of 1966, and in September 1966 RCA Service Company was awarded the Maintenance and Operations Contract for AUTEC.

Temporary U.S. Mainland Headquarters was opened at the

On 26 February 1967, AUTEC was commissioned at West Palm Beach when Admiral E. J. Fahy, Commander, Naval Ship Systems Command, presented Captain Jackson with orders making him the first Commanding Officer, and AUTEC became an operational field activity. In May 1967, headquarters personnel moved from Orlando to West Palm Beach and established offices at the Palm Beach International Airport in the building which was formerly the Airport Terminal. In July 1967 at a Change of Command ceremony on Andros Island, Commander Barney was relieved by the new Officer-in-Charge, Andros Ranges, Commander Frank A. Smith.

First of the three ranges to become operational was the Weapons Range in 1966. This was followed by the Acoustics Range, a portion of which became operational in 1968 with a total operational capability anticipated by the end of 1969. First phase of the Sonar Range became operational in January 1968, and the final phases, were scheduled to be completed and operational by 1974.^[4]

Deep water range

The deep water Weapons Range lies roughly parallel to the east coast of

In-air tracking is provided by radars and various other in-air tracking systems such as LATR, the Hyperbolic In-Air Tracking System (HITS), and Differential GPS (DGPS). These in-air systems cover the AUTEC Weapons Range up to a distance of 500 nautical miles (930 km) from Site 1 and a height of 70,000 feet (21,000 m). Surveillance radars operate to support air and surface safety.^[5]

In-water tracking

The in-water portion of the Weapons Range covers 500

Electronic Warfare Threat Simulator (EWTS) is a real-time system that can generate complex, dynamic, electromagnetic signal environments at the radio frequency (RF) level. With this system, AUTEC offers capabilities to test different platform receivers in an open-air, over-the-water range. The system consists of a radar simulator, pedestal and controller, antennas, high-power amplifiers, calibration equipment, and an operator workstation. The system is housed in an air-conditioned radome and located on a 74-foot (23 m) tower.[6]

Namesakes

Major facilities at AUTEC's Andros Island base were named in 1969 in honor of various Navy heroes:

• Shafer Brothers Hall, the 116-man Bachelor Enlisted Quarters (BEQ), was named in honor of Benjamin N. and John D. Shafer, who were Chief Electrician's Mates aboard the USS Thresher when she was lost in 1963.
• Jacobson Hall, the 250-man BEQ was named in honor of George W. Jacobson, Sr., Chief Motor
  Machinist's Mate who died in 1966. During World War II he served aboard the USS Pillsbury and received the Silver Star Medal for his valiant service during the capture of a German submarine off French West Africa
  in June 1944.
• Mackey Hall, the BEQ Mess, was named in honor of Harry E. Mackey, Jr., an
  French Morocco
  .
• Momsen Hall, the 75-man Bachelor Officer Quarters (BOQ), was named in honor of Vice Admiral
  Momsen Lung
  .
• Danenhower Hall, the BOQ Mess, was named in honor of Lt. Commander Sloan Danenhower who died in November 1967. He was a pioneer submariner who commanded the original
  USS Nautilus on an Arctic expedition in 1931. He was the son of John Wilson Danenhower, commander of the USS Jeannette.^[4]
• Roger L. Glei Chapel was named after Roger L. Glei who, in 1969 during the
  U.S. Army, Roger's parents, Alfred and Ruth Glei, brought him to AUTEC in October 1966.^[7]

In popular culture

• In Tom Clancy's The Hunt for Red October, the former Soviet submarine captain Marko Ramius (portrayed by Sean Connery in The Hunt for Red October movie) works for AUTEC as Mark Ramsey after his defection to the United States.
• In
  Season 9 episode "The Tell
  ", The plot of the episode revolves around AUTEC.

AUTEC also performs some biological research in the surrounding ocean environments.[8]

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center.

• BUTEC
• Naval Undersea Warfare Center

References

External links

• Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Newport, Rhode Island
• Dunning, Brian (December 3, 2013). "Skeptoid #391: 8 Secret Bases: Real of Fictional?". Skeptoid. 4. AUTEC