Fordland Air Force Station (ADC ID: P-68) 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 Signal ...

General Surveillance Radar station. It is located east of

Fordland, Missouri Fordland is a city in southern Webster County, Missouri, United States. The population was 800 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Springfield, Missouri Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Fordland was platted in 1882. The community has t ...

. It was closed in 1960.

History

Fordland AFS was one of twenty-eight stations built as part of the second segment of the

Air Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command (military formation), 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 est ...

permanent radar network, primarily to provide air defense radar coverage for southern Missouri. Prompted by the start of the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

, on July 11, 1950, the Secretary of the Air Force asked the Secretary of Defense for approval to expedite construction of the permanent network. Receiving the Defense Secretary's approval on July 21, the Air Force directed the Corps of Engineers to proceed with construction. On 1 May 1951 the 797th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron began operating

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-4 The AN/FPS-4 Radar was a Height-Finder Radar used by the United States Air Force Air Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command (military formation), command of the United States Air Force, responsible for continental air ...

radars from Fordland, 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. During 1954 an

AN/TPS-10 The AN/FPS-4 Radar was a Height-Finder Radar used by the United States Air Force Air Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command (military formation), command of the United States Air Force, responsible for continental air ...

D saw service here; it was removed in 1955. In 1958 an

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 Sta ...

replaced the AN/FPS-4 height-finder radar which was removed in 1959. In 1960 Fordland began feeding data to the Manual Control Center (MCC-2) at

Richards-Gebaur AFB Richards-Gebaur Memorial Airport is a former airport that operated alongside Richards-Gebaur Air Reserve Station (also Richards-Gebaur Air Force Station) until the base's closure in 1994, and until it was closed in 1999. Formerly, it was oper ...

, Missouri as the SAGE Data Center (DC-8) was not yet operational. However, Fordland Air Force Station was inactivated 1 June 1961 due to budget constraints. The site was reported excess to GSA in 1961, when it was conveyed via quitclaim deed in 1962 by HEW to the State of Missouri, Division of Inmate Education. Today the site is the Ozark Correctional Center (OCC), a minimum security (C-2) institution. It is also shown on maps as Fordlands Honor Camp. Many Air Force buildings remain and are in use, and from aerial images, appears to have the radar towers still standing.

Air Force units and assignments

Units

* Constituted as the 797th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron : Activated on 1 May 1951 at Fordland AFS, MO : Discontinued and inactivated on 1 June 1961

Assignments

546th Aircraft Control and Warning Group The 546th Aircraft Control and Warning Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was assigned to the 33d Air Division, stationed at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma. It was inactivated on June 4,1951. This command and control organizat ...

, 1 May 1951 : 159th Aircraft Control and Warning Group, 1 June 1951 :

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 1 ...

, 6 February 1952 *

20th Air Division The 20th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Tactical Air Command at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida where it was inactivated on 1 March 1983. During most of the division's history it ...

, 1 March 1956 *

Kansas City Air Defense Sector The Kansas City Air Defense Sector (KCADS) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the Air Defense Command 29th Air Division, being stationed at Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base, Missouri. It was inacti ...

, 1 January 1960 – 1 June 1961

Fordland Honor Camp

The Fordland Air Force Station was acquired by the Missouri Department of Corrections and in 1961, the Fordland Honor Camp was opened. It was a satellite prison of the Missouri State Penitentiary to help ease the existing overcrowded conditions. The first Commander of the newly opened Fordland Honor Camp was Sergeant Donald W. Wyrick, an employee of the Missouri State Penitentiary. He was specifically appointed to this position by Missouri State Penitentiary Warden E. V. Nash. Sergeant Wyrick would continue to work his way up through the ranks to become Warden of the Missouri State Penitentiary. Today, the site is known as the Ozark Correctional Center. It is a minimum-security prison operated by Missouri's Department of Corrections. It houses 750 male inmates, all of whom are participating in a long-term drug rehabilitation program.

References