National Security Agency - The Black Vault

1960s
1960s
The Enterprise Expands
After the first building constructed in the
mid-1950s proved inadequate for NSA’s
growing workforce, the Agency constructed an
adjacent, nine-story structure, which opened
in 1963. Offices at the newly-configured
campus focused primarily on the COMINT
function. The Director located his office on
the top floor, and the workers began to refer
to the building as the “Headquarters Building,”
with its “Ninth Floor” synonymous for the
Agency’s leadership.
Things were changing on the protect side as
well. In 1968 the Communications Security
organization also opened a new building in the
NSA complex. While the two buildings were on
the same campus, the COMSEC organization was
some distance away from the main complex.
The crises of the 1960s and, more particularly,
the war in Vietnam, necessitated rethinking
COMSEC doctrine and equipment. In response,
NSA developed the KW-7 device to encrypt
tactical message traffic in combat.
A series of devices was developed to protect
communications during the Vietnam War. The
original cipher machine, the KY-8, was generally
viewed by the military as too heavy and too
slow for use in combat. Later versions, such as
the KY-28 and KY-38, took advantage of newer
technology with integrated circuits, making
them more portable, but still secure.
The National Cryptologic School (NCS)
While buildings and technology are important,
the need to train employees in effective
cryptologic methods is vital to NSA’s mission.
Each step in the cryptologic process is
The NSA Headquarters Building, a nine-story structure, opened in 1963.
LTG Marshall S. Carter, USA, Director NSA, observes class in progress during a 1967 visit.
specialized and technical and requires unique
training to enable employees to operate at high
professional levels. One of the most important
organizations in achieving this goal is the
National Cryptologic School.
Employee training has been part of U.S.
cryptology since NSA’s 20 th century inception. In
the beginning, much of what passed as training
was the result of on-the-job mentoring, but
over time Agency leaders began to realize that
organized classes were also needed.
The role of NCS grew as NSA’s hiring increased
in the 1960s. More new employees came to the
Agency from universities and lacked military
cryptologic experience that had been typical
in the past. More and more, Agency operations
required specific technical knowledge that could
not be found anywhere other than within the
walls of the Agency.
With this in mind, NSA tailored its in-house
professional training and education program,
and, in April 1965, the Department of Defense
founded the National Cryptologic School via
DoD Directive 5100.47. Since that time, the
institution has served as the cryptologic training
ground for both military and civilian members of
the workforce.
In 1965, the NCS superintendent title changed
to commandant to more accurately reflect
the authority vested in the position and the
organization. The Cryptologic School or “The
Schoolhouse” -- as it was popularly known
among the workforce – grew in scope and
importance, and in 1972, it was given additional
responsibility for training throughout the
cryptologic community, including the Service
Cryptologic Agencies. Today the NCS continues
to meet the training challenges through its
many well-respected training programs and
educational opportunities.
More Speed in Smaller Boxes
Early on, NSA recognized computing as a
cornerstone of modern cryptologic operations
42 60 Years of Defending Our Nation National Security Agency