Qa
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Here is a copy of x letter from ARDC Headquarters to Headquarters Air Force
on 6 Oct. 59 which refers to the recent 4950th study on the status and build up
required to support testing at the EPG from a minimum maintenance situation.
sA
As
far as the Air Force is concerned, ARDC agrees that the presently authorized man-
power at the EPG (4951st) must be retained in order to allow conversion to fullscale nuclear testing in the required 12 months.
Further, they say it is important
to retain the 4950th as it presently exists.
Inserted in this time frame are some details from the Army to PMR on their
requirements for the Nike-Zeus target program which shows one IRBM target test to
be performed in the last quarter of calendar year 61 and siztteen to be performed
in calendar year 62.
The schedules for activities to support these launches from
Johnston Island show dredging to add 21 acres being done in the last half of 1959
with all the rest construction and support activities in the development, approval,
and design stages until early 1960.
The contracts won't be awarded and the work
won't physically begin on the other items until about 1 July 1960.
(3) A S.October.tS9,TWX No. C-4219 from Gerry Johnson of Livermore to Starbird
seems to be the next correspondence on'the Cottontail/Concerto program and
requests authorization again to proceed with engineering an¢ construction
for the Cottontail event. However, at a new location with a new ready date.
,LRL now plans for the Cottontail explosive to be emplaced in a separate tunnel
located north of the present Ul2b tunnel instead of Ul2b.10 as previously
wproposed. They note;a ready date possible of 1 May 1960 which they claim is
consistent with thef___|readiness for Lollipop on 1 April ‘60.
JA