1 Air Division

The following detail has been extracted from the Historical Narrative, 1 Air Division Headquarters, Period from 1 Jun 58 to 30 Nov 58.

30 Nov 58

The Improvement of the Operational Control Elements of 1 Air Division

One of the findings of the AFHQ Nuclear Defence Team, and included in the "Young Report", was that 61 AC&W Squadron and 6 TACC, if they remain in their present location, cannot continue to operate even under moderate fallout conditions. The team considered, and 1 Air Division HQ agreed, that there was a necessary and urgent need to establish 6 TACC and 61 AC&W Squadron in underground shelters.

Upon request of AFHQ, 1 Air Division HQ provided an estimate of the cost to build an R-3 building to combine 6 TACC and the GCI, and to house additional consoles. 1 Air Division HQ also provided an estimate of the cost of establishing 6 TACC and 61 AC&W Squadron in Ouvrage Jury and of removing the antennae a safe distance away. 1 Air Division HQ recommended that the Ouvrage Jury proposal be abandoned as it was not considered possible to accommodate the facilities in Jury, and urged that a conference be held with all interested agencies to establish firm plans for dispersing the entire 1 Air Div HQ, 6 TACC, 61 AC&W Squadron and the Telecommunications operational complex now centered at Metz.

AFHQ advised 1 Air Division HQ in Aug 58 that the dispersal and protection for 61 AC&W Squadron was going before the Air Council and that 1 Air Division's recommendation that a conference be held was covered in the submission. However, in Sep 58, AFHQ advised that information was being awaited from CJS(L) on the role 61 AC&W Squadron is to play in SHAPE's proposed integrated air defence system, and that further consideration of the improvement of the capability of 1 Air Division's operational control elements and the protection against blast and fallout would depend on this information. No further information has been received at this HQ.