National Security Agency - The Black Vault

1990s
1990s
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Colin Powell uses
NSA technology to communicate securely with the Pentagon during Operation Desert Shield.
Agency leaders began to ponder the prospect of
raising it just a bit.
The move to openness would not be easy. The
challenge was to engage the public enough
to demonstrate the critical role NSA plays in
defending the Nation while protecting sensitive
sources and methods. Despite earlier efforts,
large portions of the American public remained
suspicious of the Intelligence Community
overall and of NSA in particular.
Under Admiral Studeman, NSA, for the first
time, publicly stressed the contributions of the
organization to the economy of the Central
Maryland region and the state in general. In
Photo by Sgt Jeff Wright
addition, NSA began a series of locally based
math outreach programs to promote the study of
cryptology to faculty and students at local schools.
The National Cryptologic Museum
In the early 1990s Admiral Studeman took
NSA’s public outreach programs to a new level
with the opening of the National Cryptologic
Museum. Located on the edge of the main NSA
campus, the new museum, with free admission
and open access, quickly became a valuable
tool to educate the public about the history
and success of NSA. The museum also served
as a means for helping the greater world to
understand the indelible role that cryptology
had played throughout human history.
In 1996, at the urging of Director Lt Gen
Minihan, NSA created the National Vigilance Park
(NVP). NVP was designed to honor those “silent
warriors” who risked their lives performing
airborne signals intelligence missions during
the Cold War. The centerpiece of the park is
a C-130 aircraft, refurbished to resemble the
reconnaissance-configured C-130-A downed by
Soviet fighters over Soviet Armenia in 1958.
The park also has on exhibit an Army RU-
8D Seminole that honors those involved in
airborne cryptologic intelligence-gathering
missions during the Vietnam conflict, and a U.S.
Navy EA-3B aircraft to honor the seven U.S.
Navy crewmen who lost their lives in a similar
aircraft during an operational mission in the
Mediterranean in 1987.
Desert Storm
Having led the Agency through the aftermath of
the collapse of the Soviet Union, Admiral Studeman
remained at the helm during the Nation’s first
post-Cold War military operation – Operation
Desert Storm, the effort to free Kuwait from
Iraq. NSA provided key SIGINT support during
both Desert Shield, the buildup phase, and
Desert Storm, the combat phase. Throughout
the conflict, the Agency supplied the United
States and the coalition with the information they
needed to prevail, while providing secure tactical
communications on the battlefield.
An Appreciative Leadership
In recognition of NSA’s work during the conflict,
President George H. W. Bush came to NSA to praise
its employees for their support to Desert Storm.
President Bush commended NSA employees as
“the unsung heroes of Desert Storm.” He said,
“Our success in the Gulf could quite literally
never have happened without the dedication
that’s on display right here through all the days
and all the nights of Desert Storm.”
General Colin Powell, Chairman of the Joint
Chiefs of Staff, during Desert Storm also
visited NSA in 1991. He told the workforce that
“no operational commanders, probably in the
history of warfare, certainly in the history of
LEADERSHIP
DIRECTORS
VADM William Studeman, USN
(August 1988 – May 1992)
VADM Michael McConnell, USN
(May 1992 – February 1996)
Lt Gen Kenneth A, Minihan, USAF
(February 1996 – March 1999)
Lt Gen Michael V. Hayden, USAF
(March 1999 – April 2005)
DEPUTY DIRECTORS
Robert L. Prestel
(July 1990 – January 1994)
William P. Crowell
(February 1994 – October 1997)
Barbra A. McNamara
(October 1997 – June 2000)
82 60 Years of Defending Our Nation National Security Agency National Security Agency 60 Years of Defending Our Nation 83