Ground Equipment Facility Explained

A Ground Equipment Facility of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a radar station or other designated Air Traffic Control site of the United States. Several of the facilities originated as Cold War SAGE radar stations, including some facilities of the joint-use site system (JUSS)[1] (e.g., San Pedro Hill Air Force Station provided radar tracks for both the Army and USAF). The USAF declared full operational capability of the 1st 7 Regional Operational Control Centers (ROCCs) on December 23, 1980.[2]

JSS Ground Equipment Facilities
IDsLandform STCoordinatesinitial yearFAA yearInactivated
J-12 (Z-249)Dauphin Island (Dauphin Island AFS)AL19591980tbd
J-31 (Z-39)San Pedro Hill (San Pedro Hill AFS)CA19611997n/a
J-33 (Z-38)tbd (Mill Valley AFS)CA19511980
J-34 (Z-37)tbd (Point Arena AFS)CA1951tbd1998
J-36ASan Clemente Island (San Clemente Island AFS)CA1952
tbd (DC-21DC)Grovers Cliff (Fort Heath)CA1959mid-to-late 1990s
tbd (Z-10)tbd (North Truro AFS)MA19511995tbd

Notes and References

  1. Book: Butler . Gerald W . Shaner . Mary; Shaner, Richard . Shaner . Richard . The Guns of Boston Harbor . May 2001 . 9780759647305 . 2013-03-01 . In 1958, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) constructed long-range acquisition radar at Fort Heath. Commissioned in 1959, the ARSR-1 radar was used to track aircraft 220 miles distant for flight-following" purposes. …the army and air force also used this surveillance radar for Air Defense Control and Coordination Systems (ADCCS)..
  2. Del Papa . Dr. E. Michael . Warner . Mary P. . October 1987 . A Historical Chronology of the Electronic Systems Division 1947-1986 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131224105532/http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a201708.pdf . live . December 24, 2013 . ESD-TR-88-276 (AD-A201 708) . 2012-07-19 . so-called Semi-Automatic Direction Center System, later known as…Semi-Automatic Ground Environment System, in essence, the Lincoln Transition System..