Charleston Air Force Station
Charleston Air Force Station
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| Part of Aerospace Defense Command | |
| Charleston, Maine | |
 Charleston AFS
Location of Charleston AFS, Maine
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| Coordinates | 45°05′30″N 069°05′42″W / 45.09167°N 69.09500°WCoordinates: 45°05′30″N 069°05′42″W / 45.09167°N 69.09500°W |
| Type | Long Range Radar Site |
| Code | ADC ID: P-65 NORAD ID: Z-65 |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by |
 United States Air Force
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| Site history | |
| Built | 1950-1951 |
| Built by | U.S. Air Force |
| In use | 1952-1980 |
| Garrison information | |
| Garrison | Charleston, Maine |
| Occupants | 765th Air Defense Group 765th Aircraft Control and Warning (later Radar) Squadron |
Charleston Air Force Station is a defunct Air Force Station that opened in 1952 and closed in 1980. It was located in Charleston, Maine and is the site of a radar station and other buildings. After closure, it was redeveloped into a juvenile jail for the state of Maine.
In late 1950, construction began on Charleston Air Force Station. Known as Bull Hill for its location in the town, the station was one of twenty-eight stations built as part of the second segment of the permanent Air Defense Command national radar network. Prompted by the start of the Korean War, on July 11, 1950, the Secretary of the Air Force asked the Secretary of Defense for approval to expedite construction of the second segment of the permanent network. Receiving the Defense Secretary’s approval on July 21, the Air Force directed the Corps of Engineers to proceed with construction.
Completed in early 1951, and fully manned and operational when the 765th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron brought Charleston AFS to life in April 1952 and assumed coverage that had been provided by a temporary Lashup Radar Network site at Dow AFB (L-l). The site initially had AN/FPS-3 and AN/FPS-5 radars, and initially the station functioned as an aircraft control and warning station.
In 1957 an AN/FPS-6 replaced the AN/FPS-5 height-finder radar. Another height-finder radar came in 1958 along with an AN/FPS-20 search radar that replaced the AN/FPS-3. During 1959 Charleston AFS joined the Semi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) system, feeding data to DC-05 at Topsham AFS, Maine. After joining, the squadron was redesignated as the 765th Radar Squadron (SAGE) on 1 October 1959. The radar squadron provided information 24/7 the SAGE Direction Center where it was analyzed to determine range, direction, altitude, speed, and whether or not aircraft were friendly or hostile.
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