678th Air Defense Group
Active	1970–1983
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Role	Air defense
Decorations	Air Force Outstanding Unit Award
Insignia
Subdued patch with 678th Air Defense Group emblem

The678th Air Defense Group is a disbandedUnited States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the20th Air Division ofAir Defense Command atTyndall Air Force Base, Florida. Thegroup was formed in 1970 when ADC expanded itsradar units that operatedBack-Up Interceptor Control sites fromsquadron sized units to groups. From 1977 until it was inactivated in 1983 the 678th was responsible for operating the Southern Air Defense System.

The678th Air Defense Group replaced the 678th Radar Squadron (SAGE) (formerly the 678th Aircraft Warning & Control Squadron) atTyndall Air Force Base in 1970.^[1] The group operated aBack-Up Interceptor Control (BUIC) site with the mission to back up the centralized and vulnerableSemi-Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) operations center of the20th Air Division atGunter Air Force Base, Alabama. The BUIC III operated by the group gave the unit a semi-automatic control capability, unlike earlier BUIC systems that required manual operation.^[2] The group provided air defense mission command and control from 1970 to 1983. It was a component ofAerospace Defense Command (ADC) (later transferred toTactical Air Command (TAC)) Air Defense Weapons Center from 1974 to 1981. The group earned an Air Force Outstanding Unit Award for exceptionally meritorious service for the period 1 June 1970 through 1 June 1972.^[3]

In 1969, the inadequacy of the radar coverage to the south of the United States had been dramatically illustrated whan a CubanMikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 went undetected before it landed atHomestead Air Force Base, south ofMiami, Florida.^[4] and two years later, anAntonov An-24 similarly arrived unannounced atNew Orleans International Airport.^[4] As a result, ADC established The Southern Air Defense System (SADS). Initially, the630th Radar Squadron operated a manual control center at theHouston Air Route Traffic Control Center and the USAF added radars to supplement the existingFederal Aviation Administration coverage in the Caribbean area.^[4] In 1977, responsibility for operating the SADS control center was transferred to the group, which was operating the last BUIC III site in ADC.^[5] The previous year the group also assumed responsibility to operate the TyndallNORAD Control Center.

The group continued to act as a control center until it was inactivated in 1983 when the Tyndall radar site became part of theJoint Surveillance System.^[1]

• Constituted as 678th Air Defense Group on 13 February 1970

Activated on 1 March 1970

Inactivated on 1 March 1983^[1]

Disbanded on 27 September 1984^[6]

• 20th Air Division, 1 March 1970 – 1 March 1983^[1]

None

• Tyndall AFB, Florida, 1 March 1970 – 1 March 198330°04′35″N085°36′35″W / 30.07639°N 85.60972°W /30.07639; -85.60972 (Tyndall AFB)^[1]

Award streamer	Award	Dates	Notes
	Air Force Outstanding Unit Award	1 June 1970-1 June 1972	[3]

 This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

• Cornett, Lloyd H; Johnson, Mildred W (1980).A Handbook of Aerospace Defense Organization, 1946–1980(PDF). Peterson AFB, CO: Office of History, Aerospace Defense Center. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 23 November 2006. Retrieved20 November 2011.
• Leonard, Barry (2009).History of Strategic Air and Ballistic Missile Defense(PDF). Vol. I. 1945–1955. Fort McNair, DC: Center for Military History.ISBN 978-1-4379-2131-1. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 10 November 2013. Retrieved29 September 2012.
• AF Pamphlet 900-2, Unit Decorations, Awards and Campaign Participation Credits, Vol IIArchived 4 August 2015 at theWayback Machine Department of the Air Force, Washington, DC, 30 Sep 76

• Winkler, David F.; Webster, Julie L (1997).Searching the skies: The legacy of the United States Cold War Defense Radar Program. Champaign, IL: US Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratories.LCCN 97020912.^{[dead link]}

• "Information for Tyndall AFB". Radomes, Inc. Retrieved21 August 2014.

• Aerospace Defense Command units
• Military units and formations established in 1970
• Air defense groups of the United States Air Force
• Military units and formations in Florida
• Military units and formations disestablished in 1984

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