1 - The Black Vault

Early in the spring of 1993, all three flying
squadrons had their unit mission statements updated
to reflect their new operational capabilities.
Changes made included adding helicopter refueling
for the 1st SOS and deleting its sea surveillance
mission. The addition of the helicopter refu eling
mission was required after the 1st SOS received
its first Combat Talon aircraft modified with aerial
refueling pods. With the 1st SOS acquiring the
helicopter refueling modification, the 17th SOS
was scheduled to receive the new Combat Talon II
aircraft and return its assigned HC-130s to other
units in the United States. The 1st SOS had
maintained the capability to perform sea surveillance
since the early 1970s, but it had not been
tasked to perform the mission for the past several
years. 89 Training required to maintain the sea
surveillance capability was eliminated.
The first six months of 1993 also saw an acute
manning shortfall for the 1st SOS. The squadron
experienced a shortage of navigators and loadmasters.
It also suffered from a lack of aircrew
experience as it rebuilt following the complete
turnover of personnel in 1992. The squadron was
often assigned crew members fresh from initial
flight training or crew members from bomber,
fighter, or transport units. The rapid growth of
the Combat Talon II crew force in the United
States and in Europe had drained the experienced
CT I aircrew and maintenance pool. 90 Inexperienced
crew members required additional training
sorties, but they were enthusiastic about the
Combat Talon mission and worked hard to gain
experience in the shortest amount of time.
On 25 June 1993 Stankovich relinquished com -
mand of the 353d SOG to Colonel Thigpen, who ha d
been the deputy commander, 1st SOG, before coming
to Kadena AB. The ceremony was officiated by
General Fister and was attended by General
Rokosz, the commander of SOCPAC. Stankovich
had made great strides in acquiring facilities for
the emergency beddown of the group at both
Kadena and Osan ABs. It would fall to Thigpen
to continue the aggressive facilities renovation/
con struction program already under way and to
prepare the group for its ORI that was scheduled
during Exercise Foal Eagle in the fall. 91
When Thigpen assumed command in June, the
353d SOG had 21 facilities projects in the construction
phase at Kadena AB and three more in
MOUNT PINATUBO TO OPERATION JOINT ENDEAVOR
the design stage. At Osan AB 19 projects were in
the works for the 31st SOS. Some of the Kadena
AB projects called for major renovations to buildings,
thus requiring relocation of the group’s
squadrons during the construction phase. For the
1st SOS the squadron had to move to two rooms
in building 3524 during the renovation of its operations
facility, a building that had been formerly
occupied by an SR-71 squadron. The group
was scattered across the sprawling Kadena AB
complex in 12 different buildings, sharing some
facilities with 18th Wing units. Although the fa -
cilities met minimum requirements, they did not
meet planned future growth requirements or address
organizational changes under the new ob -
jective force restructuring directed by General
McPeak. Additionally, the wide dispersal of 353d
SOG buildings was not conducive to unity of command.
As a result of these shortcomings, Colonel
Thigpen called for a “comprehensive review of fa -
cilities requirements” in late June. He established
a facilities working group to assess the group’s
long-term needs. 92
Over the course of the summer, the working
group reassessed the 353d SOG’s building requirements
with an eye towards future growth
and consolidation. The working group developed a
list of objectives that included group consolida -
tion, adequate (as opposed to minimum) space for
its assigned units, maintaining unit integrity, and
providing a quality environment in which to work.
The recent CT II SATAF had identified the need
for a second hangar for the group, and the working
group developed further justification for the
facility. In addition to the CT II requirement,
maintenance needed an additional hangar to
minimize aircraft downtime, perform corrosion control,
and to operate a fuel cell facility.* Sufficient
storage space for the group’s Readiness Spares
Package, its Benson tanks, and its aircraft maintenance
supplies generated additional facility requirements.
A strategic facilities plan was developed
by the working group that identified each
group requirement and how it could be met. The
plan was finalized in September 1993. 93
The decision to permanently beddown the 353d
SOG at Kadena AB came on 24 September 1993
when US Forces Japan (USFJ) released an official
statement announcing the group’s new status. It
had been nearly two and one-half years since
__________
*Aircraft assigned to the 1st and 17th SOS routinely waited days to get into the 18th Wing fuel cell facility due to higher priority for Kadena-assigned
F-15 aircraft. The group was given fuel cell priority from 1800 on Friday until 0800 on Monday. Both the MC-130E and the HC-130P/N were older
aircraft that required fuel cell repair on a more frequent basis than the newer C-130H model. The situation was unfair to group maintenance personnel
because it compelled them to work weekends to repair their aircraft after the aircraft sat during the week. The addition of a second-group-assigned
hangar where fuel cell repair could be accomplished became a high priority for the facilities’ working group.
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