498th Tactical Missile Group

"We got our handle, Wave Makers, from maintenance because we locked horns with a major over a nose availability assignment issue. Our LO had a philosophy of "don’t make waves," BUT, the Capt went to the 498th Commander, Lt Col. Batwell. The Col. spoke to the Major and we won!"

"When we asked the LO why he created a wave his reply was “ If you take the trouble of creating a wave, make it a tidal wave or don’t bother.” Therefore – Wave Makers. No problem with maintenance issues after that."

Crew #1 (Wave Makers) (1960 through 1963) Launch Officer - Capt. William Bassett

• Crew Chief SSgt William “Bill” Voorhees
• Mech. #1 A2C Eugene “Geno” Boozer
• Mech. #2 A2C John “JC” Bordne (Guest book signer #135)
• Mech. #3 A2C Michael “Mike” Schaubach
• Mech. #4 A2C William “Bill” O’Hara (Guest book signer #25)
• Mech. #5 A2C Richard “Rick” Marshal

  
  John Bordne (jcbordne@hotmail.com)

An assembled missile on the lowered door. The Mace B was not usually seen fully assembled outside of the launch bay as in this show position. Operational assembly normally took place in the launch bay itself: first, the Thiokol Booster Bottle was loaded to the fuselage, the the bird was wenched down into the bay. The warhead section was mated next, followed by the nose section which contained the missiles guidance and flight controls

Photo courtesy of Dennis Cralley, Sr.
(dcralleysr@cox.net)

Site 1 was at Yomitan Peninsula (Bolo Point)on the west side of the island. This was the closest site to Kadena, just a little north of Kadena Circle.

"We were sent to Kadena Air Base on Okinawa in the summer of 1961. Bolo Point was still under construction when the squadron arrived. The generators had been lowered into place a couple of weeks before we got there and the builders had just finished capping off the underground facilities the day we showed up at the launch site. That was still one BIG hole that had to be filled in. Sites 2, and 3 had most of the concrete poured and site 4 was still a HUGE hole in the ground."

" The summer of 1961 was spent pulling cables for bays 1 and 2. The crew ready room and launch room was still one big sheet of shock suspended metal with a framed in closet sized area that must be for the latrine."

" The first part of the fall was spent pulling cables for bays 3 and 4. The now boxed in area in the crew ready room must be for the latrine. End of fall 1961 saw the LAGG brought in and hooked up, the walls were finished and the completed closet must be,,,,oh, oh…the gun closet!

"Where was the latrine? MOC (Missile Operations Command) reply was “Ha Ha..saved some tax payer money. Use a honey bucket”.

Rules for the honey bucket:

1. First one to use it emptied it at the end of the shift.
2. Once christened, all crew members could use it.
3. Do not be the first to use it.
4. Fresh air breaks would be permitted.

"Way to go engineers! You saved the tax payers BIG BUCKS! Thanks a lot from all the thankful crew members that ever worked in those eight launch centers!"

John Bordne (jcbordne@hotmail.com)

873rd TMS

"I thought I would check the internet and see if there was anything on the Mace Missile Systems as an army friend had never heard of it. After reading the information on the TM-76B Mace Missile and the hard sites located on Okinawa, I thought I would drop you a note as I was stationed at Kadena Air Base, Okinawa from 1961 - 1963. I was assigned to the 873rd TMS (498th TMW) as a Nuclear Weapons Specialist on the 76B "Bird"... as we called it. I was assigned to Site 1. If I can recall correctly, it was also referred to as Bolo Point. I was a member of the first WR Launch Crew for the Mace B on Oki. and our crew worked with The Martin Co. to get the first ( 4 ) Birds on line. I was at the site, on alert, during the "Cuban Missile Crisis" and it was interesting..."

T. E. Maye ( Tim ) A1C, USAF, 1960-1964 (tmaye@msn.com)

The hardened Mace "B" Launch Site 2 at Kadena Air base, Okinawa, at White Beach, Katsuren Peninsula, on the east side of the island. Photo taken during the early sixties,

In the Hole

The Launch Crew accepts the Mace and begins preparation for the count to 600B

Photo courtesy of Dennis Cralley, Sr.
(dcralleysr@cox.net)

Site 3 was on the east side of the island and north of Kin Village and Camp Hansen. This was the farthest site from Kadena, around twenty miles or so.

874th TMS

"Looking at those photos I got the feeling that it was suddenly 40 years ago. WOW, talk about flash backs. I was assigned to site three but spent some time at site four as well .. both were 874th TMS sites.

Sites One and Two belonged to the 873rd TMS.
I am sending two JPG files of two patches. One is the 874th TMS patch and the other is the Combat Ready patch. These might give someone else some flash backs as well.

Thanks for the memories."

Tim Lewinski (timlew@chartermi.net)

Looking for the "Green Eye"

Using the K&E Theodolite to reference the guidance system.

Photo courtesy of Dennis Cralley, Sr.
(dcralleysr@cox.net)

Site 4, Onna Point, was in the mountains and just about in the middle of the island

The planned layout for a hardened Mace B site. Each of the two Launch Command Centers, buried 60 feet under the paved loading and transport ramp, controls four launch bays. The Mace site was called a "semi-hardened" launch site, even though the facility was designed to withstand a nuclear attack.

Photo courtesy
of George F. Kovach -(GFKGDK@aol.com)

TM-76B (CGM-13B) Mace in launch position. The hydraulic system is powered up for acceptance test, (1500 PSI supplied by an external Hydraulic Power Supply, HPS) but the Flight Controls System has not yet gone active (left spoilers full up.)
The two nozzles aimed at the tailpipe are water nozzles used during firing of the RATO bottle.

Photo: Stars and Stripes European Edition

The entire Missile Maintenance Complex. Supply (MAST) was in the building at the lower left. Motor Pool was to the left of the cocooned missiles. Engine run-up and Periodic Inspection was in the upper right of the photo where the exposed bird is parked. Nose picker trucks are in the middle of the photograph and also at the ramp of the guidance building, the large building at the lower right. That building housed Guidance (GSC), Flight Controls, ground power (AGE), corrosion control, workload control, analysis and records, nose replacement, and missile replacement.
The road at the bottom of the photo leads to gate 3 and all the launch sites. North is to the right of the photo.

GEMS shop Kadena.

""I worked in the GEMS shop, 1962-63, the guy in the left looks like Richard Selle. There are a few of us in the Denver area who taught the Mace at Lowry still around"

James Masters (JimMasters@worldnet.att.net)



"Yes it is me in the picture, but it isn't the GEMS shop. That was taken in the TEMS shop at a time when the circuit card tester was in there. It was later put back into the GEMS shop.

I was there for four years and have many good memories of both the work and the people. I have made contact with a few people from those days, but would like to hear from many more."

Richard Selle (sellrich@juno.com)

The Corrosion Control Shop

The cable repair shop. Can anyone ID the people in this photo?

Picture of cable repair shop - man on right appears to be Grover Hoover. I was stationed there 1963-1965, or thereabout. Great site. Brings back a lot of memories. Bud Bench (budbench@hotmail.com) USAF Retired

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