The Texas Towers were a set of off-shore radar facilities used by the United States Air Force during the Cold War that were modeled on the offshore oil drilling platforms first employed off the Texas coast. The platforms were used for radar surveillance of the Atlantic Ocean near the eastern seaboard of the United States from 1958 to 1963.
On January 11, 1954, the USAF approved the construction of 5 Texas Towers as part of the Air Defense System. Only three were built, phased into operation between 1958 and 1960
Texas Towers - Air defence radars.
Texas Tower 2 - Georges Shoal, in 56-foot (17 m) deep water, 110 miles (180 km) east of Cape Cod 41°44′N 67°47′W / 41.733°N 67.783°W / 41.733; -67.783, linked to North Truro, MA.
Texas Tower 3 - Nantucket Shoals, in 80-foot (24 m) water, 100 miles (160 km) south-east of Rhode Island 40°45′N 69°19′W / 40.75°N 69.317°W / 40.75; -69.317 , linked to Montauk AFS, Long Island, NY.
Texas Tower 4 - Un-named Shoal (Unofficially: Old Shaky), in 185-foot (56 m) water, 84 miles (135 km) south-east of New York City 39°48′N 72°40′W, (Destroyed, with 28 killed, during a storm on 15 January 1961), linked to Highlands, NJ mainland station.
The Texas Towers 10 KW UHF power amplifier. The name on the Texas Tower transmitter is National-Ewen Knight. Ewen Knight built the first high power transmitters for Lincoln Lab. Credit: Photo courtesy of Doc Ewen.
The Texas Towers klystron UHF power amplifier tube in socket. Credit: Photo courtesy of Doc Ewen.
Scarcely a month elapsed, however, when Hurricane(12 September 1960) whirled in at forces exceeding design specifications: 132mile per hour winds and breaking waves exceeding 50-foot heights.
Early reports mentioned that TT-4, evacuated of all personnel two days before, But those claims have been rebuked by some Survivors who survived this is actually backed up by how the military felt about Russia at the time, and comments from officers at the time not wanting the Towers and the technology on the Texas Towers to fall into the hands of the Russians.
In 1960 Hurricane Donna roamed the Atlantic from August 29 to September 14, a total of 17 days. Hurricane Donna Passed Directly Over The Texas Tower #4.
Part of TT-4 superstructure was destroyed; worst of all, below-water bracings were fractured, cutting overall strength to 55 per cent of what it had been built up to prior to Further examination of above and below-water components resulted in a decision to undertake extensive repairs in the spring of 1961. 1 February 1961 was established as the date for complete evacuation of TT-4. Meantime, a maintenance crew of 28 persons (14 USAF and 14 contractor repair personnel) were stationed aboard to perform certain repair work.
During A Winter Storm On January 15, 1961 The AKL-17 Was Ordered To Take On Equipment From The Texas Tower #4 And Stand By Incase The Tower Had To Be Evacuated. The Ship AKL-17 Was Later Ordered Back To Port But The Brave Crew Defied The Orders And Stayed Incase They Were Needed. Sixto Mangual Continued To Monitored The Texas Tower #4 On There Ships Radar And Two-Way Radio. When The Tower Vanished From His Radar The Captain Of The AKL-17 Called Out But His Calls Would Go Unanswered. Captain Sixto Mangual The Captain Of The Ship AKL-17 Said "One Minute It Was There The Next Minute It Was Gone".
These following photos are of Tower#4 wreckage that were taken by Chuck Zimmaro Who Also Participated In The Making Of The Documentary "Doomed tower at sea."
Sponge of the land in the water? (inside joke that makes no sense.)
Go to these links below to learn more.
http://www.thetexastowers.com/index.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_Towers
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2011/02/09/133628393/fifty-years-later-28-men-lost-when-old-shaky-collapsed-are-honored?sc=fb&cc=fp
3 comments:
i was on the akl 43 and we use to supply the tower with food and other equipment it was hoisted by the personel on board form the akl 43 also theiwas another ship i forget the name of it
of coarse i'm serious
I served on board tt-2 from aug 1960 to march 1962. FYI,there were other vessels that served our towers: the AKL-17, the USNS Rosebud, and the USNS New Bedford. At one time or another,during my tour, I was transported to and from tower 2 on each of these. However, my trips were mainly aboard the AKL17. I'm not sure which one had the designation AKL-43. It may have been a ship that I didn't have the "PRIVELEGE" of sailing on. Anyway, I do invite chatting with either former tower mates or other interested parties. My e-mail is: riouxvictor@yahoo.com. Parati Sumus!
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