1 - The Black Vault

ESTABLISHMENT OF COMBAT TALON
immediately set about to develop plans to fight
this “new” type of warfare, which came to be
known as psychological warfare, or PSYWAR for
short. 29
In 1950 Air Staff/PW created two special operations
wings devoted to the PSYWAR mission and
scheduled them to be activated in 1952. The plan
called for three additional wings to be activated in
1953, with future growth programmed to seven
wings. On 5 January 1951 the Military Air Transport
Service (MATS) was tasked to organize,
train, and equip these new wings. For security
purposes, the special operations wings were designated
“air resupply and communications wings.”
A new service was established to provide oversight
for this new capability and was designated
the Air Resupply and Communications Service
(ARCS). 30
Activated on 23 February 1951 at Andrews
AFB, Maryland, the ARCS represented the most
ambitious commitment to special operations since
World War II and was responsible for oversight of
the PSYWAR mission of the US Air Force. The
catalyst for this new capability was the requirement
by the CIA for long-range air transport of
guerrilla warfare agents and supplies into Sovietoccupied
Europe and Northwest Asia. ARCS was
responsible for USAF unconventional warfare
(guerrilla warfare), direct action (commando-type
r aids), strategic reconnaissance (intelligence gathering),
and PSYWAR operations. 31
The 580th Air Resupply and Communications
Wing (ARCW) was activated at Mountain Home
AFB, Idaho, in April 1951, with a second wing,
the 581st ARCW, following in July. A third wing,
designated the 582d ARCW, was activated in
1952. The three wings were organized and
equipped in a similar manner, with the exception
that the 581st ARCW was the only wing having
rotary-wing aircraft. First-year activities for the
580th and 581st were devoted to training aircrew
and support personnel in their new PSYWAR
mission and in rebuilding Mountain Home AFB,
which had fallen into disrepair since the end of
World War II. In early 1952 the 581st received
orders to forward deploy to Clark AB, Philippines,
and to be assigned to Thirteenth AF. The first to
deploy overseas, the composite wing arrived at
Clark AB in July 1952 with six squadrons specifically
tailored to perform the PSYWAR mission. 32
Of the six squadrons assigned to the wing, the
581st Air Resupply Squadron (ARS) was the lone
squadron devoted to flying operations. Assigned
to the 581st ARS were 12 specially modified B-29
heavy bombers, four C-119 heavy transports, four
SA-16 amphibians, and four H-19A helicopters.
(The 580th/582d ARS were equipped with the same
number of fixed-wing aircraft.) All aircraft were
new, except for the B-29s, which had been pulled
from USAF storage at Warner Robins AFB, Geor -
gia. The mission of the 581st ARS was the infiltration,
resupply, and exfiltration of guerrilla-type personnel,
and the aerial delivery of PSYWAR materiel
(leaflets and other similar materiels). The other five
squadrons supported the 581st ARS by providing
maintenance, cargo airdrop rigging, long-range
communications, and PSYWAR/leaflet production.
One unique squadron was devoted to preparing
guerrilla-type personnel for insertion into enemyoccupied
territory. 33
The 581st ARCW proved to be a very flexible
wing, and its initial theater deployment plan, outlined
in FECOM Operations Plan (OPLAN) 3-52,
capitalized on this flexibility. The OPLAN established
a concept of operations for theater forward deployment
of assigned 581st ARCW assets. Four B-
29s and associated support personnel were placed on
a 60-day rotation schedule to Yokota AB, Japan, to be
colocated with the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance
Squadron, which also flew the B-29. The four C-119
and support personnel were placed on a 90-day rotation
schedule, with the commander, 315th Air Division
(AD), to determine where the aircraft would be
deployed. Two SA-16s were sent to K-16 in Korea to
augment B Flight of the 6167th Air Base Group.
The four H-19A helicopters were also forward deployed
to K-16 in support of the 2157th Air Rescue
Squadron (in fact, they were colocated with the
2157th but actually supported B Flight, as did the
two SA-16s). 34 CCRAK maintained Operational
Control (OPCON) of these forces and employed
them into northern Korea along with B Flight and
Special Air Missions detachment aircraft.
Extensive modifications were required for the B-
29 Superfortress to enable it to perform the special
Photo courtesy of Apollo’s Warriors
B-29s from the 581st ARCW supported long-range psychological
leaflet operations into northern Korea.
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