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On the Wings of the Wind: The United States Air Force Security Service and Its Impact on Signals Intelligence in the Cold War

Shackelford, Philip Clayton
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7685-3937
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ksuhonors1399284818

Abstract Details

2014, BA, Kent State University, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of History.
The United States Air Force Security Service (USAFSS), created in 1948, was the first signals intelligence organization to be created post-World War II and played an integral role in Cold War intelligence gathering. Indeed, despite its relatively young age compared to its Army and Navy counterparts, the USAFSS soon became the premier agency for signals intelligence in the early Cold War and was responsible for hundreds of secret listening posts around the world. This thesis argues that the USAFSS was able to have such a large impact on the post-World War II intelligence community due to a high level of technological proficiency, dedication, and a close working relationship with the National Security Agency (NSA) after its establishment in 1952. Using oral history interviews and declassified government documents, this thesis explores how the USAFSS was established and how it grew to leave a lasting impact for both contemporary Cold War intelligence agencies and the modern incarnation of Air Force intelligence.
Elizabeth Smith-Pryor, Ph.D (Advisor)
Timothy Scarnecchia, Ph.D (Committee Member)
Fred Endres, Ph.D (Committee Member)
Leslie Heaphy, Ph.D (Committee Member)
67 p.
Armed Forces; Computer Science; Engineering; European History; History; Information Science; Information Technology; International Relations; Mass Communications; Military History; Military Studies; Modern History; Political Science; Russian History; Science History; Technical Communication; Technology; World History
Air Force; United States Air Force; Security Service; National Security; Intelligence; Signals Intelligence; Cold War; Soviet Union; United States; Armed Forces; National Security Agency; NSA; USAFSS; Cold War History; History; United States Military;

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Shackelford, P. C. (2014). On the Wings of the Wind: The United States Air Force Security Service and Its Impact on Signals Intelligence in the Cold War [Undergraduate thesis, Kent State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ksuhonors1399284818

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Shackelford, Philip. On the Wings of the Wind: The United States Air Force Security Service and Its Impact on Signals Intelligence in the Cold War. 2014. Kent State University, Undergraduate thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ksuhonors1399284818.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Shackelford, Philip. "On the Wings of the Wind: The United States Air Force Security Service and Its Impact on Signals Intelligence in the Cold War." Undergraduate thesis, Kent State University, 2014. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ksuhonors1399284818

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ksuhonors1399284818
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© 2014, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Kent State University Honors College and OhioLINK.