Post-Attack Command and Control System Facility, Hadley
| Post Attack Command and Control System Facility, Hadley | |
|---|---|
| Part of Strategic Air Command | |
| Hadley, Massachusetts | |
 Entrance to the Bunker |
|
| Type | Hardened underground facility |
| Coordinates | 42°18′15.13″N 72°32′6.37″W / 42.3042028°N 72.5351028°W. |
| Built | 1957-1958 |
| Built by | U.S. Air Force |
| In use | 1958-1970 |
| Garrison | Hadley, Massachusetts |
| Occupants | 8th Air Force |
| Events | Cuban Missile Crisis |
Post Attack Command and Control System Facility, Hadley is a defunct Post-Attack Command and Control System facility that operated from the June 2, 1958 until 1970. It is located under The Notch on Bare Mountain in Hadley, Massachusetts. The facility was known by many different names: 8th Air Force Combat Operations Center (COC), "The Notch", and "Westover Communications Annex" since it was related to nearby Westover Air Force Base.
Contents |
[edit] History
In 1957, Strategic Air Command began construction for a hardened bunker to contain the command post for 8th Air Force, which was located at nearby Westover Air Force Base, Chicopee, Massachusetts. The facility was located inside Bare Mountain, off Route 116, and was nicknamed "The Notch." The underground bunker was built into the side of Bare Mountain was hardened to protect it from the effects of a nearby nuclear blast, and the facility was designed so that the senior military staff could facilitate further military operations.[1]
[edit] Reuse
The facility was shut down in 1970, when 8th Air Force was relocated to Barksdale AFB, Louisiana. After the U.S. Air Force abandoned the site in 1970, the Federal Reserve took over and used it as a secure storage facility for their records. Allegedly they stored large sums of money there as well, money that would be used to restart the economy after a nuclear war.[2]
Today, the bunker is used as a library storage facility for the Five Colleges.[3]
[edit] Units Based There
- 8th Air Force (1958–1970)
- 814th Combat Defense Squadron (1958–1968)
- 99th Security Police Squadron (1968–1970)
[edit] Gallery
-
Entrance to the fenced in area of the bunker, as seen in 2010
-
A view of the bunker from behind security fencing
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- "The Notch" PACCS installation, with photos of the facility when it was active
- Westover Joint Air Reserve Base (JARB), GlobalSecurity.org
- "The Notch" - Westover Communications Annex - PACCS
- "Library Holdings Moving Underground", Smith College news
- Course syllabus that describes the Notch
- 814th Combat Defense Squadron - Air Police squadron that guarded "The Notch"
- A 1990s era photo of the entrance
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
