The Search for Continental Security
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THE SEARCH FOR CONTINENTAL SECURITY: The Development of the North American Air Defence System, 1949 to 1956 By MATTHEW PAUL TRUDGEN A thesis submitted to the Department of History in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Queen’s University Kingston, Ontario, Canada September 12, 2011 Copyright © Matthew Paul Trudgen, 2011 Abstract This dissertation examines the development of the North American air defence system from the beginning of the Cold War until 1956. It focuses on the political and diplomatic dynamics behind the emergence of these defences, which included several radar lines such as the Distant Early Warning (DEW) Line as well as a number of initiatives to enhance co-operation between the United States Air Force (USAF) and the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). This thesis argues that these measures were shaped by two historical factors. The first was several different conceptions of what policy on air defence best served the Canadian national interest held by the Cabinet, the Department of External Affairs, the RCAF and the Other Government Departments (OGDs), namely Transport, Defence Production and Northern Affairs. For the Cabinet and External Affairs, their approach to air defence was motivated by the need to balance working with the Americans to defend the continent with the avoidance of any political fallout that would endanger the government‘s chance of reelection. Nationalist sentiments and the desire to ensure that Canada both benefited from these projects and that its sovereignty in the Arctic was protected further influenced these two groups. On the other hand, the RCAF was driven by a more functional approach to this issue, as they sought to work with the USAF to develop the best air defence system possible. Finally, the positions of the OGDs were shaped by more narrow priorities. For example, C.D. Howe and the Department of Defence Production sought to use these joint radar projects to build up the Canadian electronics industry. Canada‘s air defence policy in the 1950s, therefore, was a compromise between these various conceptions of the national interest. i The other major influence on this process was the attitude of the Truman and Eisenhower administrations towards continental air defence. This dissertation will argue that most of the measures to improve the security of the continent emerged because of the efforts of the United States, but at the same time, the Americans‘ level of interest in these defences varied greatly over this period and ultimately were not sustained. Moreover, both these administrations had to overcome opposition from the USAF‘s senior leadership, which preferred an emphasis on the offensive nuclear forces of the Strategic Air Command (SAC) over improved air defences. This dissertation thus makes an important and original argument that contributes to the scholarly literature on the Canada-U.S. defence relationship during the early Cold War. ii Acknowledgements First, I would like to thank my supervisors Allan English and Joel Sokolsky for all their work in guiding this thesis from its origins as a one-page thesis proposal to a finished dissertation. One could not have asked for two better professors to work with. They both provided excellent and sound advice and showed great patience as I worked out my ideas until it culminated in a successful defence. Sandra den Otter also deserves credit for her willingness to join my thesis committee and for her help with this project. In addition, I would like to express my appreciation to my external examiner, Joseph Jockel as well as to Randy Wakelam and Jeffrey Brison for their excellent questions, comments and suggestions during the defence. I would also like to thank the Queen‘s University History Department for providing me the opportunity to write this dissertation and for the funding and teaching opportunities that allowed me to complete it. In particular, I would like to single out Richard Greenfield, David Parker, Robert Shenton, Sandra den Otter and Karen Dubinsky for their assistance. Furthermore, one should never forget all the good work done by the department‘s graduate assistant, Yvonne Place, who is the heart of the graduate program as well as the department‘s administrative assistants and secretaries including Debbie Stirton-Massey, Cathy Dickison and Cindy Fehr who showed great patience in allowing me to overcome my organization deficiencies these last six years. Moreover, I need to acknowledge the assistance I have received from the Canadian Forces Aerospace Warfare Centre (CFAWC) and its historical officer Major William March. CFAWC has both provided me an opportunity to present papers and some research positions which I am quite grateful for. iii Thanks should also go to all my former professors at Huron University College, the University of Western Ontario and Kings University College where I did my Undergraduate and Masters` degrees. These academics provided much good advice and support over the years and include my MA supervisor Andrew Johnston as well as Colin Read, Paul Nesbitt Larking, Douglas Leighton, Jack Blocker, Garry Owens, Marta Dyczok, Alfred Chan, Neil Bradford, James Crimmins, J. Neville Thompson, Brock Millman and Paul Webb. A word should be said about the assistance I received from the various archives where I conducted my research including the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) II in College Park, Maryland, the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library in Abeline, Kansas, the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library in Independence, Missouri and Library and Archives Canada (LAC) in Ottawa, Ontario. While many of these institutions, namely NARA and LAC, have suffered from a lack of resources in recent years, one could always count on their archivists and staff to do their best to make sure you got what you needed. Indeed, this project would not have been possible without the files that these institutions have made available. There is also one other archival institution that deserves a special note of thanks and that is the Directorate of History and Heritage (DHH). Not only did this institution provide many of most important files for my project, including those of the Raymont Collection, but its staff namely Stephen Harris, Warren Sinclair, Bob Caldwell and Mat Joost provided advice and encouragement as well as tolerating my extensive use of their photocopier. It should be emphasized that a Ph.D. dissertation is a project that one cannot complete without the support of their family, friends and colleagues. So, I would first like to acknowledge my family namely my parents Paul and Jo Anne Trudgen and my sister iv Karla. I would not have been able to finish this project without your support. The same sentiments need to be expressed to my friends in Kingston and from my days at Western including Rankin Sherling, Robert Engen, Claire Cookson Hills, Robert and Julie Dennis, Clare McElheney Sherling, Jeffrey Jenkins, Dylan Cyr and Joseph Tsiamoglou. You guys (and gals) made being a graduate student much more bearable and enjoyable. Richard Goette further deserves credit for not only being a great friend but for his sharing of research material with me and for accompanying me on two research trips to College Park, Maryland. I would also like to express my gratitude to my other fellow military historians at Queen‘s including Howard Coombs, Daniel Gosselin, Richard Mayne, Chris Kilford, Andrew Theobald, Ian Hope, Rob Martyn, Richard Roy, and Paul Johnson. Lastly, I would like to thank my colleagues both at Queen`s and in Canadian academia for their support over the years including Daniel Heidt, Charles Pentland, Maureen Bartram, Jane Errington, Gord Dueck, Cheryl DesRoches, Whitney Lackenbauer, Bert Fransden, Rachel Lea Heide, Jeff Noakes, Roger Sarty, Terry Copp, Mike Bechthold, Ray Stouffer, James McKay, Galen Perras, Anne McNeely, Kristin Ireland, Stephanie Jowett, Kelly Bennett, Samantha Sandassie, Leigh-Ann Coffey, Glenn Walker, Ana Siljak, Steve Dieter, Beth Syend, Marisha Caswell, Pamela Peacock, Carolyn Harris, Ben Woodford, Kyle Kranz, Josh Cole, and Trina Zeimbekis. Indeed, to sum it up, while the writing of a doctoral dissertation is ultimately an individual effort, it requires a lot of support as well. v Table of Contents Page Abstract i Acknowledgements iii Chapter 1: Introduction 1 Chapter 2: Literature Review 31 Chapter 3: The Canada-U.S. Defence Relationship to 1945 56 Chapter 4: The Years of Planning, 1945 to 1949 98 Chapter 5: Air Defence Co-ordination, 1950 – 1953 146 Chapter 6: The First North American Radar Defences 192 Chapter 7: The Expansion of the Early Warning System 239 Chapter 8: The Mid Canada Line and the DEW Line 290 Chapter 9: The Decline of Continental Air Defence 343 Chapter 10: Conclusion 372 Bibliography 399 vi Chapter One: Introduction Introduction On September 11, 2001, Islamist extremists launched terrorist attacks against targets in Washington D.C. and New York City. These attacks not only had an impact on the United States, but on the Canada-U.S. defence relationship. This has been partially due to strains created by disagreements between the two countries over America‘s response to the attacks including the U.S.-led ―Global War on Terror,‖ and Canada‘s opposition to the invasion of Iraq in 2003. However, what has been more significant is that these attacks have triggered an increased interest, on the part of the U.S. government, in the defence of the continent and the security of their homeland as evident by the formation