Southwest Air Defense Sector

The Southwest Air Defense Sector (SWADS) was a United States Air Force organization responsible for coordinating the air defense of a large portion of the continental United States during the late Cold War and the post-Cold War transition. It was not a commercial brand or airline; it was a military command entity within the United States air-defense system. Its final station was March Air Force Base in California, and its last higher headquarters was First Air Force. SWADS was activated on 1 July 1987 during a reorganization of the Air Force’s air-defense command structure. It received assets associated with the former 26th Air Division and operated within the Continental NORAD Region, whose headquarters were at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. The sector’s mission centered on the surveillance and defense of the atmosphere over approximately one-quarter of the continental United States. Its area extended from the Pacific coast across much of the southern and southwestern United States, with boundaries defined in part by the 36th parallel north, the 97th meridian west, the 28th parallel north, and the 122nd meridian west. The sector’s operational system combined fighter-interceptor forces, radar stations, command-and-control facilities, and data links. Its Sector Operations Control Center at March Air Force Base received information from Joint Surveillance System radar stations and from Air Route Surveillance Radar installations. The network also included data from tethered aerostat radar systems, including equipment associated with Ground Equipment Facility J-31 near Los Angeles. These resources supported detection, identification, tracking, and direction of responses to potential airborne threats. Air National Guard fighter units aligned with the First Air Force and formerly associated with the sector’s air-defense mission included the 144th Fighter Wing in California, the 150th Fighter Wing in New Mexico, the 138th Fighter Wing in Oklahoma, and the 149th Fighter Wing in Texas. These units operated F-16 aircraft and provided an important reserve-component element within the wider air-defense structure. SWADS had an institutional predecessor in the Los Angeles Air Defense Sector, which had been established in 1959 as part of the Semi-Automatic Ground Environment reorganization. The Los Angeles sector controlled interceptor and radar resources in Southern California and nearby areas until its inactivation in 1966. The later SWADS designation represented a separate activation in the 1980s rather than a continuous uninterrupted existence of the same organization. The sector was inactivated on 31 December 1994. On 1 January 1995, its functions and assets were consolidated with those of the Northwest Air Defense Sector, headquartered at McChord Air Force Base, Washington. The combined organization became the Western Air Defense Sector. SWADS therefore survives primarily as a historical command designation within the lineage of modern United States and North American air-defense organizations.

The institutional background of SWADS reaches back to the reorganization of United States air-defense forces during the early Cold War. In February 1959, Air Defense Command designated the Los Angeles Air Defense Sector while the Semi-Automatic Ground Environment system was being implemented. The Los Angeles sector assumed control of former Western Air Defense Force units and coordinated interceptor and radar resources covering Southern California, extending north toward Santa Barbara and the southern Central Valley. Its manual direction center was initially at Norton Air Force Base, California, before a SAGE direction center was completed there in 1959. The Los Angeles sector was inactivated on 1 April 1966, with its responsibilities and assets returned to the 27th Air Division. A new organization using the Southwest Air Defense Sector designation was activated on 1 July 1987 at March Air Force Base, California. The activation reflected a later restructuring of the United States air-defense system rather than an uninterrupted continuation of the 1959 Los Angeles organization. SWADS was placed initially within the 26th Air Division and received that division’s air-defense assets. Its mission was to supervise the atmospheric defense of roughly one-quarter of the continental United States. The sector’s area of responsibility covered a broad southern and western portion of the country. Its eastern boundary was described from the intersection of the 36th parallel north and the 97th meridian west southward toward the Gulf of Mexico at the 28th parallel north. Its western reach extended to the Pacific, including territory south of the 36th parallel north toward the 122nd meridian west. This geographic remit required coordination among fixed radar installations, command centers, fighter-interceptor units, and national and continental air-defense authorities. Operational control was exercised through the Sector Operations Control Center at March Air Force Base. SWADS used the Joint Surveillance System and received Air Route Surveillance Radar information from multiple radar sites. Its surveillance architecture also incorporated tethered aerostat radar balloons, including equipment associated with Ground Equipment Facility J-31 near Los Angeles. These systems provided the detection and tracking data needed for the identification and management of airborne contacts. The sector was aligned with the Continental NORAD Region, headquartered at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. On 1 October 1990, it became assigned to First Air Force, which was responsible for the relevant continental air-defense mission. Air National Guard fighter formations associated with this structure included the 144th Fighter Wing at Fresno, California; the 150th Fighter Wing at Kirtland, New Mexico; the 138th Fighter Wing at Tulsa, Oklahoma; and the 149th Fighter Wing at Lackland, Texas. These units operated F-16 aircraft and represented the reserve-component fighter capability available to the regional defense system. The organization was inactivated on 31 December 1994 amid broader post-Cold War changes to United States air-defense command arrangements. On the following day, its assets were consolidated with those of the Northwest Air Defense Sector, based at McChord Air Force Base, Washington. The resulting command was designated the Western Air Defense Sector. SWADS is consequently a defunct military organization whose significance lies in the lineage and evolution of North American air-defense command structures, not in consumer products or commercial activity.

• 1995

  Assets consolidated into Western Air Defense Sector

  [1]Southwest Air Defense Sectoren.wikipedia.org

  On 1 January 1995, SWADS was consolidated with the Northwest Air Defense Sector to form the Western Air Defense Sector.

• 1994

  SWADS inactivated

  [1]Southwest Air Defense Sectoren.wikipedia.org

  The sector was inactivated on 31 December 1994.

• 1990

  Assignment transferred to First Air Force

  [1]Southwest Air Defense Sectoren.wikipedia.org

  On 1 October 1990, SWADS became assigned to First Air Force while remaining part of the continental air-defense structure.

• 1987

  Southwest Air Defense Sector activated

  [1]Southwest Air Defense Sectoren.wikipedia.org

  SWADS was activated on 1 July 1987 at March Air Force Base, California, within the 26th Air Division.

• 1966

  Los Angeles Air Defense Sector inactivated

  [1]Southwest Air Defense Sectoren.wikipedia.org

  The predecessor Los Angeles sector was inactivated on 1 April 1966, with its functions reassigned to the 27th Air Division.

• 1959

  Los Angeles Air Defense Sector designated

  [1]Southwest Air Defense Sectoren.wikipedia.org

  Air Defense Command designated the Los Angeles Air Defense Sector on 1 February 1959 during implementation of the SAGE geographic reorganization.

• 1959

  SAGE direction center completed at Norton Air Force Base

  [1]Southwest Air Defense Sectoren.wikipedia.org

  The Los Angeles sector transitioned from a manual direction center to a SAGE air-defense direction center at Norton Air Force Base.

A regional military air-defense command rather than a commercial brand. Its role was to integrate surveillance, command-and-control, fighter-interceptor, and radar capabilities for defense of a substantial area of the continental United States.

• 1994

  Consolidation with Northwest Air Defense SectorM&A

  Background

  Post-Cold War changes led to a restructuring of regional air-defense commands and a reduction in the number of separate sector organizations.

  Action taken

  SWADS was inactivated and its assets were consolidated with those of the Northwest Air Defense Sector.

  Aftermath

  The combined organization became the Western Air Defense Sector on 1 January 1995.

  Source

• 1987

  Creation of a southwestern regional air-defense sectorStrategy

  Background

  Air-defense responsibilities were reorganized during the late Cold War to provide regional command and control over a large southern and western area of the continental United States.

  Action taken

  The Air Force activated SWADS at March Air Force Base and assigned it assets associated with the 26th Air Division.

  Aftermath

  The sector coordinated radar, surveillance, command-and-control, and fighter-interceptor resources until its 1994 inactivation.

  Source

1. 1Southwest Air Defense Sectoren.wikipedia.org