Texas Tower 3
Texas Tower 3 Air Defense Command (ADC) | |
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Nantucket shoals | |
Coordinates | 40°45′00.00″N 69°19′0.00″W / 40.7500000°N 69.3166667°W |
Type | Long Range Radar Site |
Site information | |
Open to the public | No |
Site history | |
Built by | United States Air Force |
In use | 1958-1963 |
Demolished | 1963 |
Texas Tower 3 (ADC ID: TT-3) was a former
Located in
History
Texas Tower 3 was constructed in 1956 at the former WWII New England Shipbuilding Corp. East Yard "basin" in South Portland, Maine. [Contrary to many false reports Tower 3 was NOT built at the Fore River Shipyard in Quincy, Massachusetts. ONLY Tower 2 was built at Quincy. Some confusion might have arisen due to the odd coincidence that both shipyards were located, at least partially, on rivers with identical names.] (1) The Portland (Maine) Evening Express, various articles dated 2-8 August 1956; (2) The South Portland (Maine) Historical Society online digital photo collection.)
On 7 August 1956, it was successfully floated and towed to its site and erected. Beginning in November 1956 enough of the structure was complete that one
Personnel from the
With the advent of Soviet
In August, 1964 Texas Tower 3 was blown off of its supports and towed to the Federal Yards of the Lipsett Division of Luria Brothers Inc in Kearny, NJ. The platform was proposed for re-purposing possibly as a loading dock or as a drilling platform. It was the only Texas Tower recovered from the ocean.
Units and assignments
Units:
- 773d Radar Squadron(Flight), (Operations unit based at Montauk AFS, NY), 1 June 1958 – 25 March 1963
- 4604th Support Squadron (Texas Towers) (Logistics support unit based at Otis AFB, MA), 1 June 1958 – 25 March 1963
Assignments:
- New York Air Defense Sector, 1 June 1958 – 25 March 1963
See also
- List of USAF Aerospace Defense Command General Surveillance Radar Stations
References
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
- ^ "The Texas Towers". Archived from the original on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2009.
- 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.
- 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
- Information for Texas Tower No.3 (Nantucket Shoal)
- The Texas Towers