Hastings Air Force Station
Hastings Air Force Station | |
|---|---|
| Part of Air Defense Command (ADC) | |
  Hastings AFS Location of Hastings AFS, Nebraska | |
| Coordinates | 40°34′48″N 098°17′24″W / 40.58000°N 98.29000°W |
| Type | Air Force Station |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by |
 United States Air Force |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1962 |
| In use | 1962-1968 |
| Garrison information | |
| Garrison | 625th Radar Squadron |
Hastings Air Force Station (ADC ID: SM-133, NORAD ID: Z-133) is a closed United States Air Force General Surveillance Radar station. It is located 5.2 miles (8.4 km) east of Hastings, Nebraska. It was closed in 1968.
History
Hastings Air Force Station was initially part of Phase II of the Air Defense Command Mobile Radar program. The Air Force approved this expansion of the Mobile Radar program on October 23, 1952. Radars in this network were designated “SM.”
The station became operational on 1 January 1962 with the activation of the 625th Radar Squadron (SAGE), feeding data to DC-22 at Sioux City AFS, Iowa. The radar squadron provided information 24/7 to the SAGE Direction Center where it was analyzed to determine range, direction, altitude, speed, and whether aircraft were friendly or hostile. The deployment of the AN/FPS-67B search radar and two AN/FPS-6 height-finder radars to Hastings marked the completion of the second phase of the mobile radar program.
The radars were operated until 1968 when Air Defense Command closed the station as part of a draw down of assets and budget reductions. Today, what was Hastings AFS is now known as the "Radar Industrial Park". It is generally abandoned, with the few buildings that remain severely deteriorated.
Air Force units and assignments
Units:
- 625th Radar Squadron (SAGE), Activated on 1 January 1962
- Inactivated on 8 September 1968
Assignments:
- Sioux City Air Defense Sector, 1 January 1962
- 30th Air Division, 1 April 1966 – 8 September 1968
See also
References
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.
- 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
- 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.
- Information for Hastings AFS, NE
