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<A HREF="http://www.mich.com/~ttyler/C3I/Bunkers/SITE-R/Site-R.html">The Rock
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The Rock
© 1998, 1999 Tim D. Tyler
Revision 2.2
Image courtesy US Army - AJCC
"Go tell it on the mountain" used to be a popular expression, meaning
that if you had an important message to convey, it was worth your time
and effort to go atop the nearest mountain and
shout it out to the masses. That, in a nutshell, is the mission of
the Alternate Joint Communications Center. The mountain
happens to be known as Raven Rock, and the
masses are the strategic nuclear war fighters
of the United States of America.
"Site-R" is the location designator for a major US military
bunker located inside Raven Rock Mountain, next to the community of
Fountain Dale, near Blue Ridge Summit in Adams County Pennsylvania. The
complex is also known as "the underground Pentagon," and affectionately
to its personnel as "the Rock" or "the Hole," but the official name is
the Alternate Joint Communications Center (AJCC). Over radio circuits,
the facility is known as WAR-46 (permanent callsign), and MARCONI
(permanent callword). The site is most well known as housing the
Alternate National Military Command Center (ANMCC), and the Site-R
complex is often referred to as being the ANMCC. However, the ANMCC is
just a specific facility and mission within the Alternate Joint
Communications Center. The ANMCC is now officially known as National
Military Command Center - Site-R.
HISTORY
The AJCC became operational on 30 June 1953, a little over two years
after the construction plans were approved by the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The initial concept of an emergency relocation site for the Pentagon was
proposed in a May 15,1948 memorandum to Secretary of Defense James V.
Forrestal by his senior military advisors responsible for war planning
and preparedness -- the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The Cold War had
just begun, in March of 1948 President Truman even announced to Congress
that the USSR and communism was a clear & present threat to the
USA. With their new TU-4 bombers (exact copies of the US B-29) JCS were
concerned that the Soviets would soon be capable of a Pearl Harbor-style
sneak attack on Washington would decimate America's senior military
command capability. The Pentagon was soft-target, easily recognizable by
high altitude bombers, and it was assumed that the enemy -- the USSR --
would have intercontinental ballistic missiles at some point in the
1950s, though it caught the U.S. by surprise when the Russians detonated
their first nuclear weapon on 29 August, 1949.
One of the location requirements that the alternate site had to meet
was to be located far enough from Washington DC that a concentrated
attack on Washington wouldn't damage the bunker. Yet another was that
the site still be close enough to the Washington area so that the Joint
Chiefs of Staff, their support personnel, known as the Joint Staff, and
other senior military and civilian officials could be quickly evacuated
to it by ground transportation or helicopter. A further complication in
this 'not to close, not too far' location strategy was that the facility
shouldn't be situated near the plethora of other important military and
federal government sites which would probably be targeted -- the Norfolk
Virginia navy facilities, Andrews Air Force Base in Camp Springs,
Maryland, etc.
Placement inside a mountain provides several advantages, such as:
Less likely to be observed during construction than digging a big pit
into flat ground.
Easier to tunnel sideways deep into granite than dig downward deep into
soil.
The mountain interior provides a natural equivalent to building a
facility with thousand foot thick hardened concrete walls.
Top of the mountain can be used as an antenna site, eliminating the need
for large antenna towers.
While several sites were studied, Raven Rock was clearly the best in
terms of location from DC, and geological factors (super hard greenstone
granite composition). Additionally, a perfect support base -- Camp
Ritchie, was just a few miles away in Cascade Maryland. President Truman
gave final approval for the 'Fort Ritchie - Raven Rock Site' project in
May of 1950, and the Department of Defense started acquiring 718 acres
of land from over 30 individual property holders. While most of the land
was sold to the US Government in 1950, transfers via condemnation
weren't complete until 1954. Initial wording of the condemnation
proceedings were vague. The United States needed the land "...to
adequately provide for the establishment of facilities for the use of
the Department of the Army and for other military uses incident thereto.
...and other such uses as may be authorized by Congress or Executive
Order. ...lands are required for immediate use."
Obviously, by this time the locals knew something was going on. If
they didn't learn about the land being transferred to the government,
they certainly could not help noticing the ground shaking as a result of
work crews blasting the initial portals and caverns into the mountain,
24 hours a day! It was just the beginning of the Cold War, and the
concept of having to build hiding spots within the USA to protect the
senior political and military leadership was understandably foreign to
the people in the areas surrounding Raven Rock Mountain. However, as
usually was the case, the patriotic locals accepted their new military
neighbor without asking too many questions, and more importantly, didn't
talk about it amongst themselves too loudly. This was lucky for the
federal government, because they didn't bother to do background
investigations on the construction crews, nor was there initially any
security to keep curious civillians (or saboteurs) out of the
construction site.
At the time the "Fort Ritchie - Raven Rock facility" achieved initial
operating capability on 30 June 1953, it consisted of five chambers with
three steel 3 level buildings inside. Detailed information pertaining to
the construction and design of this 45 year old bunker is still
restricted at a minimum of the For Official Use Only level.
Raven Rock Mountain, aka Site-R, with Site-RT on top.
Camp Ritchie, a Maryland National Guard facility built in 1926 and
named after long-time Maryland Governor Albert Ritchie, had been loaned
to the federal government during early WWII for use as a recreation
center. It was later converted to a military intelligence training
center, with the facility and adjacent grounds (including what is now
the Camp David presidential retreat) being used to train Office of
Strategic Services personnel and others in demolition, escape & evasion,
etc. A mock German village was also created so operatives who would be
going behind German lines could pick up the language and cultural
nuances of German communities. After WWII, Camp Ritchie reverted to the
State of Maryland and was used as a long-term care hospital for people
with tuberculosis and other chronic diseases. A few years later the
federal government purchased the 645.87 acre base from the state for
$2,350,000 and promptly renamed it Fort Ritchie. In retrospect, this
demonstrates how sure the Department of Defense was that the proposed
Raven Rock site would be approved.
Fort Ritchie would be the primary support base for Site-R, providing
administrative support so that the Raven Rock facility could focus on
its operational mission. Examples of these administrative functions
include housing & recreational activities for off-duty personnel,
payroll processing, etc. Shipments, packages, and regular mail would go
to Ft. Ritchie where it could be examined for tampering (bugging
devices, bombs, etc.) before Army personnel would transfer it to Site-R.
Initially, each military branch maintained their own independent
operations centers and had little coordination between them, just as was
the case in the Pentagon. Army support personnel were assigned to Site-R
full time in order to operate the communications, power, plumbing
systems, etc. However many of the operations personnel -- the decision
makers -- would have been expected to relocate from their normal posts
in the Pentagon to Site-R during a crisis. This plan was silly, since
the impetus for the construction of Site-R was the concern over a sneak
attack! Helicopters were still in their infancy, small, under powered,
and not even stationed at the Pentagon, so the emergency relocation of
key personnel from the Pentagon to Site R would have mostly utilized
ground transportation. Located slightly over sixty miles from the
Pentagon, Site R would take at least an hour to drive to under optimum
conditions. Factor in rush-hour traffic, inclement weather --or even
worse, mass pandemonium as civilians flee the area during a crisis-- and
the drive time increases greatly.
With the advent of Soviet nuclear weapons-capable bomber aircraft, by
the mid 1950s it became imperative for the Alternate Joint
Communications Center to actually place an emphasis on jointness. Site-R
was managed for the Joint Chiefs of Staff by an organization known as
the Joint Communications Agency, which mostly consisted of Army
personnel. This wasn't the problem. The problem was that each branch of
the armed forces had their own space inside Site-R, and operated pretty
much independently of their rival military branches. President
Eisenhower, a former Army 5-star General who had commanded joint forces
during WWII, and was head of the JCS (from February to March of 1949,
while the President of Columbia University. This was at a time before
the title of Chairman of the JCS was created) took a proactive approach
on such matters. Plans were drawn up to make an Alternate Joint War Room
inside Site-R, which would become the wartime fusion center for US
military strategic command, control, communications and intelligence.
The Alternate Joint War Room facility would actually consist of several
compartments -- an operations room, briefing room, and smaller rooms for
communications and automated data processing equipment. A diverse array
of secure and clear radio and wire-based communications systems for
voice and data were added for worldwide connectivity as well as locally
within the AJCC. The Alternate Joint War Room was established in 1959,
and by the Spring of 1961 it was staffed by a multi-service Joint
Alternate Command Element battlestaff team operating 24 hours a day,
while the Army continued to provide most support functions such as com
municators, security, and maintenance for the Joint Communications
Agency.
A partial glimpse at one of the Site-R tunnel
entrances, called a portal. Two openings at
the top are machine-gun ports to repel a
ground attack
As part of the communications improvements and expansions, numerous
annexes to the AJCC became operational in the 1950s. Some, such as the
HF radio sites, were constructed at the same time Site-R was being
built. Others were added during other major improvement projects. All
were operated by detachments of the Joint Communications Agency, which
later became known as Joint Support Command, US Army Communications
Agency -- the organization which managed much of the AJCC's mission.
These annexes --classified CONFIDENTIAL until the 1970s-- were:
SITE-A -- High Frequency radio transmit site near Greencastle
Pennsylvania.
SITE-B -- High Frequency radio receive site, near Keedysville/Sharpsburg
Maryland.
SITE-C -- VHF/UHF/Microwave & Satellite radio site, atop Mount Quirauk,
immediately south of Fort Ritchie.
SITE-CREED -- Autonomously operated hardened facility within Site-R
complex..
SITE-D -- Microwave relay site, located near Damascus, Maryland.
SITE-E -- Microwave relay site, located in Tyson's Corner, Virginia.
SITE-F -- Microwave relay site, located at Fort George Meade, Maryland.
SITE-RT -- VHF/UHF/Microwave relay site, located atop Raven Rock
Mountain.
SITE-X -- Former communications annex, near Wolfsville, Maryland.
GWEN -- Not specific AJCC annexes, but two Ground Wave Emergency Network
sites
in the vicinty had a special link to Site-R.
Several other small communications facilities, operated by Navy
personnel, were also established to directly or indirectly support the
AJCC mission. Unlike the 'soft' JSC/USASTRATCOM sites, these Navy
facilities were bunkers in their own right.
Known/suspected locations (deactivated) for these facilities include:
Cross Mountain, Mercersberg Pennsylvania
Inside the current Camp David Presidential Retreat, near Thurmont
Maryland
Mount Weather, Virginia
Martinsburg, West Virginia
Several other locations are still in use for classified, national
security-related purposes.
Visiting Site-R? Be sure to leave your
crossbow at home!
In April of 1962, the Army Communications Agency merged with the
Army's Signal Engineering Agency to form the US Army Strategic
Communications Command (USA STRATCOM). The AJCC and annexes continued to
be operated by the Joint Support Command, but now JSC was a STRATCOM
agency.
Strategic Communications Command
Like his predecessor, President Kennedy had also been a military
officer experienced in the fog of war, and realized that the chaos would
be much greater with a nuclear exchange -- especially now that
intercontinental and medium range ballistic missiles were a reality.
Department of Defense Directive 5100.30, titled Concept of Operations of
the World Wide Military Command and Control System (WWMCCS, pronounced
"wimex") sought to enforce the doctrine of joint operations as well as
improve strategic command, control and communications when put into
effect on 16 October, 1962. A critical element of WWMCCS was the
National Military Command System, which established four key national
command authority command centers:
The National Military Command Center (NMCC), located in the Pentagon
provided the primary interface for the Joint Chiefs of Staff and
Secretary of Defense in their day to day command and control of forces.
*
The Alternate National Military Command Center, formerlyknown as the
Alternate Joint War Room. Located at Site-R and --as the name
indicated-- provided a hardened facility for senior military and
national leaders for use as a combat operations center in wartime, or a
crisis management center during national civil emergencies, or other
situations that reduce the effectiveness of the NMCC.
*
The National Emergency Command Post Afloat (NECPA), a US Navy ship
equipped with special communications and battlestaff areas, kept in
Chesapeake Bay or off the East Coast of the USA to be used as a National
Command Authority relocation spot. NECPA program was initiated during
the Eisenhower administration, and deactivated in 1970.
*
The National Emergency Airborne Command Post (NEACP), utilized USAF
EC-135J (later replaced with E-4A/Bs) aircraft on ground alert at
Andrews AFB, providing a survivable strategic C3,I platform for the
President or other National Command Authority. Also known under the
NIGHTWATCH program name, this mission is still being performed.
WWMCCS/NMCS also established the Minimum Essential Emergency
Communications Network -- a collection of high priority communications
systems and circuits which would be used by the National Command
Authority to direct US nuclear forces. These independent systems
included voice & record-mode (data), secure and nonsecure, radio and
wire-based circuits which would provide the initial alert from the NCA
facilities to the military branch command & control centers which would
then relay more specific orders to their assets (the strategic
triad). The Alternate National Military Command Center's communications
section is able to interface directly and indirectly with several MEECN
systems. Some are used on a routine basis, while others would only be
used by Site-R during an exercise or crisis.
SITE-R TECH CONTROL, 1962 -- (L - R) MSG D. Dick, NCOIC Tech Control,
bent over looking at a teletype signal
distortion analyzer, PFC R. Foster, Tech Control shift operator, Mr. C.
Safransky, the Army Civilian Communications
Specialist on shift in Tech Control, and LT D. Garrison, Tech Control
Officer In Charge observing.
(Photo ©1962, 1999 Chuck Safransky)
The Tech control boards on the left of the picture are all the 'black'
DC teletype circuits, using either landline, multiplex systems
(AN/FGC-5), High Frequency radio (AN/FGC-60/61) or carrier equipment
(AN/FCC-3). The Tech Control boards along the back of the picture are
the audio boards -- voice microwave and High Frequency SSB circuits,
plus a video conference switching system and telephone hotline circuits
to the White House, Pentagon, Strategic Air Command Headquarters, and
other command centers. Teletypes on the right are dedicated circuits to
a variety of US and NATO command facilities around the world.
Additional critical voice and data communications circuits for the
AJCC and other facilities were provided by AT&T Corporation. In the
early 1960s this network was known as the Switched Circuit Automatic
Network (SCAN), later known as AUTOVON (AUTOmatic VOice Network), and
finally replaced with by the digital Defense Switched Network (DSN) in
the early 1990s. As part of this program, AT&T built numerous hardened,
bunker-like switching centers inside hills and mountains to provide an
element of physical security and redundancy for the switches. Many of
these facilities are linked to AJCC via microwave radio, though a major
effort is underway to phase out the microwave links & replace them with
fiberoptic cable. To this day, AT&T continues to provide a major w
ire-based communications capability for Site-R, and has their own room
(3N1) for demarcation purposes inside the Rock. 3N1 contains what is
known in telephone company parlance as the "Blue Ridge Summit #1"
telephone switch. Further, remote communication outlets for a JCS
Tactical Switchboard UHF communications network to be used by Joint
Emergency Evacuation Plan helicopters airlifting personnel to Site-R and
other emergency relocation sites were located on several AT&T microwave
radio towers.
SITE-R TECH CONTROL, CARRIER MAINTENANCE SECTION 1962
(L - R) Army civillian Tech Control employees Mr. C Safranski and Mr. J
Chewning
with LT D Garrison, Officer in Charge for Tech Control & Maintenance.
(Photo ©1962, 1999 Chuck Safransky)
The picture shows them checking the AN/FGC-61 SSB teletype carrier
equipment. The
racked equipment shows the frequency generator and reader, and the
distortion analyzer meter.
Major physical enhancements to the Site-R facility occurred in the
mid 1960s, when two more chambers were constructed under the management
of the Army Corps of Engineers. This extra space boosted the personnel
capacity to close to 3000 people (most of which would be required to
'hot bunk' in austere living quarters) and included a small compartment
within the ANMCC specifically for the President. This apartment for the
President (& spouse) is affectionately known at "The Lucy & Desi Suite,"
as it's furnishings are pure 1960s kitsch. It's reported that even the
soap in the apartment's bathroom has been there since the 1960s!
The Alternate National Military Command Center was able to enlarge,
and automated data processing capability was expanded, namely in the
form of the custom-designed Automatic Message Processing System (AMPS).
AMPS equipment consisted of Burroughs Corp 824 switches at the NMCC and
ANMCC, interfacing with the Automatic Digital Network (AUTODIN). While
the NMCC switch could only handle 50 subscribers, the one at the ANMCC
could handle 128. Specifically, AMPS:
"...provided automatic message switching and distribution
for specific requirements of the Joint Staff and to interface
with State Department, the Central Intelligence Agency, and
the White House."
(History of the U.S. Army Strategic Communications Command, FY 1970)
Power generation systems were very crucial to the performance of AJCC
communication, cryptographic, and data processing systems, many of which
were "fault intolerant" when it came to power interruptions or voltage
fluctuations. This potential problem was handled by continuously
operating several locomotive-sized generators to provide power. Several
other generators stood-by as back-ups. Two AJCC power plants ('East' and
'West') each house three locomotive-sized generators and their diesel
fuel supply, with exhaust shafts running to the surface.
"South Gate" -- one of two alternate entrance/exits.
Kind of a rather personal thing for a highly sensitive
command & control bunker to be advertising, don't you think?
At some period in the late 1960s or early 1970s, Soviet ICBM
technology had finally progressed to the point where if they knew where
the target was, they had the warhead yield and delivery system accuracy
to hit and destroy even a hardened target such as Site-R. The Joint
Chiefs of Staff and Secretary of Defense were surely aware that by the
late 1970s, there was at least one 25 megaton warhead on a SS-18
destined for Site-R, and it certainly was on the minds of the personnel
assigned there. It should be assumed that around the mid-1970s time
period, alternate strategic command, control, communications and
intelligence facilities designed to shelter and support the Joint Chiefs
of Staff and National Command Authorities in trans and post nuclear
combat environments were designated. Emphasis would have been placed on
smaller facilities, easier to build & operate in extreme secrecy.
Nonetheless, Site-R still performed an important function. It can be
argued that while perhaps the Soviets could not have afforded to not
target Washington DC for concentrated nuclear barrages, sparing at
least one US strategic C3,I facility would be necessary in order for the
two warring nations to ever be able to discuss a cease in the
hostilities. Site-R might be that facility, yet placing the Joint Chiefs
or Secretary of Defense there would be a gamble. Site-R had the
capability of riding out virtually any sort of conventional war, natural
disaster or civil insurrection, however.
Site-R, with Portals A & B, & Site-RT. The clearing towards the middle
of
the image is the West exhaust shaft.
For twenty turbulent years, Site-R had performed a very valuable
mission -- standing by as the Pentagon's nuclear war combat operations
center. Of course, this was a mission that the U.S. had hoped would
never actually be carried out. In effect however, the mere existence of
a (then) secure facility which would survive a nuclear attack and allow
the United States to effect a coordinated response was a deterrent to
possible hostilities, just as hidden C3,I and Continuity of Government
facilities are today. Site-R was not designed to survive a direct hit,
and by the mid 1950s when the Russians were experimenting with
intercontinental ballistic missiles, the DOD realized that, because the
location of Site-R was well-known to the Soviets, eventually their miss
ile technology would be capable of hitting and destroying the facility.
Site-R's utility for nuclear war was not infinite.
Site-R staff were capable of commanding
& controlling a nuclear crisis, but apparently
NOT able to find Site-R without the assistance
of this little sign at a nearby intersection for
most of the 1980s & 1990s!
In 1973, US Army Strategic Communications Command was re-designated
US Army Communications Comman (ACC), as a reflection of the multitude of
tactical communications provided in addition to strategic circuits. By
this time, Army Communications Command managed base-level
telecommunications circuits (telephone, voice & data networks, Army
Military Affiliate Radio System, etc.) for Army facilities and agencies
across the United States. At around the same time STRATCOM was replaced
with ACC, Joint Support Command was deactivated, and the 7th Signal
Command, headquartered at Fort Ritchie-- was established in it's place,
taking over the Army mission of supplying administrative and
peacetime/wartime communications support to the Alternate Joint
Communications Center and Alternate National Military Command Center.
The Commander of 7th Signal Command wore a dual hat -- he or she was
also base commander for Fort Ritchie.
While official confirmation and details are still classified because
divulging them would provide clues regarding other facilities and
systems whose even existence is classified ('black' sites), the early
1970s saw the AJCC quietly transform from a primary National Command
Authority relocation site and trans/post nuclear war communications
center to a major telecommunications hub performing day to day automated
data processing and operational support for the DOD and Joint Staff,
while retaining an initial emergency command and control role.
No web on Site-R would be complete without a photo of what I dub as
"Site-RS,"
though technically known as the Site-R Wastewater Treatment Plant.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Site-R continued to house a major
telecommunications network control hub operated by the Defense
Communications Agency (later the Defense Information Systems Agency),
individual emergency operations centers for all the military branches,
and was an emergency relocation site for several federal agencies. ANMCC
communications personnel also continued to provide daily communications
support for the World Wide Airborne Command Post Program (WWABNCP) and
other MEECN assets, in addition to supporting special exercises and
deployments. DOD funding for Site-R maintenance and system upgrades
continued, but the focus was on systems that saw daily use, and/or would
be used during contingencies where it was not expected that Raven Rock
would experience a strategic nuclear attack. 1984 saw yet another new
name come into play for the management of Site-R. Army Communications
Command and Army Computer Systems Command merged to form the U.S. Army
Information Systems Command.
CURRENT DAY OPERATIONS
By the early 1990s, the Soviet Empire was in shambles, and the Cold
War had debatably ended -- the Russians couldn't even control their own
republics, so it was doubtful they'd try to conquer the United
States. The Department of Defense initiated drastic cutbacks, and
there was plenty of public scrutiny regarding the government's 'nuclear
war bunkers,' especially from the public who no longer supported so much
of their tax dollars being spent to try to protect the same leaders
who'd probably be responsible for getting the nation into a war to begin
with! The notion of DETERRENCE was lost on these people.
The Site-R complex was maintained on a high state of alert for
decades, tied in to NORAD threat warning assessment systems, the White
House Situation Room, the Strategic Air Command (later US Strategic
Command) underground command center at Offutt AFB and their 'Looking
Glass' airborne command post, as well as other known and secret National
Military Command System facilities. Any action at the National Military
Command Center which might have had a ramification regarding the US
nuclear war operations plan -- known as the Single Integrated
Operational Plan, was closely coordinated with the NMCC's Alternate in
Raven Rock. While the JCS and NMCC got the attention and handled most
day to day operations, the ANMCC was always in the background, ready to
assume control if situations dictated.
On February 1, 1992, the 24-hour a day alert function of the
Alternate National Military Command Center was terminated. While the
story was that this action was a result of the end of the Cold War, the
reality is that there are 'black' (extremely secret) facilities in
operation around the clock which can and will handle the Pentagon combat
operations center/emergency relocation site missions. Site-R is able to
perform a peacetime liaison mission with the 'black' facilities,
allowing them to tie into and utilize Site-R's organic external
communications capabilities (HF radio, SATCOM, etc.) in order that they
may preserve use of their own inherent radio communications systems for
wartime use. Frequent use during peacetime would eventually result in
detection by signals intelligence assets of potential enemies.
Subsequent to this, the "Mayor of Raven Rock" (Commander of the
1111th Signal Battalion, the 1108th Signal Brigade unit which actually
operates much of Site-R. Unofficially, the commander is also known as
'The Grand High Mole,' and oversees the unofficial 'Fraternal Order of
the Moles'), requested that DOD officials examine the feasibility of
opening up limited parts of the AJCC for quasi-public (media, local
politicians & civic clubs, etc.) tours. This idea was rejected, and any
visitors to Site-R are supposed to be on official business only. The
reality, however, is that since at least the early 1970s, employees of
Site-R have provided 'unofficial' tours to local politicians and Boy
Scout troops among others. Ironically, part of Raven Rock mountain is
also home to the Raven Rock Lutheran Camp,a religious retreat used for
camping, hiking, etc. These days, immediate family members of personnel
assigned to Site-R are allowed to visit the site in order to participate
in special events such as awards ceremonies, Christmas dinners, etc.
They are required to be escorted at all times, and take a special
'unclassified' route to get to the ceremony location.
Numerous articles reported that Site-R has been "mothballed," or put
into "caretaker status." The reality is that a complete ANMCC emergency
actions battlestaff no longer staff the facility 24 hours a day, and the
AJCC for the most part has assumed a commercial business-hours
posture. The couple hundred Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, other
federal employees and civilian contractors mostly work 9AM-5PM
shifts. During times of crisis or the quarterly JCS Emergency Actions
exercises, ANMCC operations staff would be augmented by personnel from
the NMCC, and could be helicoptered in via Army, Air Force, and Marine
Corps helicopters, a percentage of which are kept on alert for this
Joint Emergency Evacuation Program mission. Site-R, radio callword
MARCONI and callsign WAR-46, maintains at least one HMMWV-based
deployable Joint Staff communications support vehicle, heard
occasionally on radio circuits as MARCONI MOBILE, WAR-46 MOBILE or a
classified JCS callword. It is nominally stored within one of the Site-R
tunnels, and during exercises or heightened states or alert is
forward-deployed away from the Raven Rock area.
24 hour a day operation at Site-R continues with military branch
Emergency Operations Centers, the Defense Information Systems Agency's
regional telecommunications management and control center, and certain
other operations and information systems assets of the military and
civil federal government. One of the information systems that Site-R has
always been involved with is force status -- at any time, what is the
readiness condition of our forces, how much fuel is on hand at a B-52
dispersal base? Is that dispersal base even intact, or has it already
been destroyed? These days, the major joint command and control computer
network is known as the Global Command and Control System. It, and the
Global Command Support System, provide a fused, near-real time joint
system to monitor worldwide situations, process commands, and even
suggest particular operations plans depending on the situation
assessment. Another critical asset maintained at Site-R is a Defense
Red Switch Network switch -- basically an extremely robust telephone
network to be used by senior government officials during a nuclear
war. Extensive information systems are a 24 hour a day operation, for
which supporting missions such as AJCC power production (now using
modern Uninterruptable Power Supply systems in addition to the large
generators) and security personnel remain on-site around the
clock. On-site security staff perform roving and fixed-station interior
and exterior activities, supported by their Site Security Control
Center, codenamed HAWKEYE (prior to HAWKEYE, it had been known as
BACKFIRE).
The interior of the Rock is rather dark and dank, with many of the
rooms and passageways still having 1950s or 1960s-era furnishings -- not
the type of place you'd like to be buttoned-up inside of for a prolonged
period of time. Music is piped into open hallways to mitigate the
possibility of classified conversations emanating out of offices and
reverberating down the halls. All unescorted personnel inside Site-R
must have a minimum of a SECRET level security clearance, and despite
the hundreds of feet of granite, the AJCC is home to numerous Sensitive
Compartmentalized Information Facilities which provide extra physical
and electronic protection for especially sensitive meetings or
information systems.
The complex has a recreation center consisting of an exercise room,
weight room, and a couple racquetball courts for off-duty personnel, a
barber shop open several days a week, a small Post Exchange, and at
least at one time, even a vending machine which sold beer! The cafeteria
is named Granite Cove. If it ever runs out of fresh food, there is a
large supply of Meals, Ready to Eat stored within the bunker.
To some, it might seem surprising that Site-R would have leisure
facilities within it, but consider that in a contingency, the facility
would be 'buttoned-up' -- sealed for days or weeks at a time, so it is
extremely important that off-duty staff have the ability to physically
exercise and mentally relax.
While the DOD was not prepared to shut down Site-R, Fort Ritchie was
not so lucky. The 1995 Base Realignment And Closure Commission
determined that the small, isolated (& thus expensive) post could be
shut down without jeopardizing the still-vital mission of the Alternate
Joint Communications Center. The Secretary of Defense concurred. Fort
Detrick, exactly 20 miles South of Site-R, would become the new support
base. This new mission wasn't exactly welcomed by Detrick, which all of
a sudden found itself searching for the space and funds to support about
1200 more personnel. Nor was it looked forward to by many of the Fort
Ritchie/Site-R personnel, who enjoyed the cozy and scenic little base,
and the brief commutes to Site-R. However, it was a cost-effective
act. The official 'hand-off' took place on 1 October 1997, about a year
after the transfer process started.
Yet another consolidation and name changed occurred in the Fall of
1996. In a streamlining effort, US Army Information Systems Command
became US Army Signal Command (ASC), a subordinate of Forces
Command. The ASC's 1108th Signal Brigade, specifically the 1111th Signal
Battalion, is the entity that operates much of the Alternate Joint
Communications Center on behalf of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and
Department of Defense. The 1108th & 1111th headquarters are located at
Site-R's main support base of Fort Detrick, in Frederick Maryland.
In order to reduce the effect of the closure of Fort Ritchie, the
closure process had been drawn out, with the intention that as military
use of a building or section of the base stopped, a commercial user
would immediately take it over. That hasn't worked out as hoped for, the
largest complaint of prospective businesses being the lack of major
transportation arteries in the area. While a National Guard unit will
continue to use a small part of the grounds, Fort Ritchie's last day of
existence was 30 September, 1998. PenMar (for Pennsylvania-Maryland)
Development Corporation now owns the land and is responsible for
developing it into commercial use as a biomedical, telecommunications
and federal contracting technology park known as Lakeside Corporate
Center at PenMar. Due to concerns about adequate protection, the
military continues to fund a fire department on the site until 1
October, 1999, and funds security provided by off-duty Washington County
Sheriff Deputies.
Portal A (the right one) & Portal B. Building on the right is a
security & visitor
control center. Notice all the personal vehicles, and keep in mind that
most of the
military personnel who work in the Rock are transported between Site-R &
Fort Detrick
via bus. On a normal day, hundreds of people work inside the Alternate
Joint
Communications Center at Site-R.
The helipad on the right, Portal A on the left. The tree clearings to
the left and right
of the helicopter landing pad are flight safety zones for helo
approaches and
departures.
Portals C (right) & D (left), on the opposite side of Raven Rock. Barely
visible on the
opposite side of the road in between the portals is a storage building.
SOURCES & CREDITS
More Images -- Got a fast modem or big interest in Site-R?
LINKS-- Click to see other web sites pertaining to the AJCC/Site-R.
BACK -- Go (back?) to my main C3,I Page.
Unless noted otherwise, all photographs were taken May & June, 1998 and
are copyrighted by Tim Tyler
The author of this web page encourages comments, corrections, and
additional information from others familiar with Site-R.
Revision 2.2
© 1998,1999 Tim D. Tyler
-----
Aloha, He'Ping,
Om, Shalom, Salaam.
Em Hotep, Peace Be,
Omnia Bona Bonis,
All My Relations.
Adieu, Adios, Aloha.
Amen.
Roads End
Kris
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