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Topsham Air Force Station | |
|---|---|
| Part ofAir Defense Command (ADC) | |
| Site information | |
| Type | Air Force Station |
| Controlled by |  United States Air Force |
| Location | |
  Topsham AFS Location of Topsham AFS, Maine | |
| Coordinates | 43°56′42″N069°57′46″W / 43.94500°N 69.96278°W /43.94500; -69.96278 (opsham AFS DC-05) |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1957 |
| In use | 1957-1969 |
| Garrison information | |
| Garrison | Bangor Air Defense Sector 36th Air Division |
Topsham Air Force Station is a closedUnited States Air Force station. It is located 2.1 miles (3.4 km) north ofBrunswick, Maine. It was closed in 1969.
Topsham AFS was initially the headquarters of theAir Defense CommandBangor Air Defense Sector (BaADS), which was activated on 8 January 1957.
In 1958 aSemi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) Data Center (DC-05) was established at Topsham AFS. The SAGE system was a network linking Air Force (and later FAA) General Surveillance Radar stations into a centralized center for Air Defense, intended to provide early warning and response for a Soviet nuclear attack. A GATR site (R-25) was also constructed at Topsham as part of the654th Radar Squadron atBrunswick AFS, but was reassigned to the BaADS at Topsham AFS when the 654th RADS was inactivated in 1965.
The BaADS was absorbed by the36th Air Division, being moved to Topsham fromDavis Monthan AFB, Arizona on 1 April 1966. DC-02 with itsAN/FSQ-7 computer remained under the 34th AD until it, and the Air Division was inactivated on 30 September 1969 when technology advances allowed the Air Force to shut down many SAGE Data Centers.
With the inactivation of the 36th AD, the station and GATR site were closed. The former Topsham AFS is now an annex of the now-closedNaval Air Station Brunswick. The SAGE DC blockhouse was demolished in August 1985 and is now a recreation field.
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
