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IFC Battery Control

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This is where the Battery Commander (or Battery Control Officer) and the Acquisition Operator sat. This was the central command place of the battery. Summations of the status of other places of the battery arrived here, and commands to battery components went out from here.

Visitors could view this area, but only after various charts and documents were covered, such as:

- A pie diagram showing the azmuths and elevations below which our radars could not see.
Near by big buildings, trees, etc. had a large effect on this
- Various other commands, codes, and materials regarded as classified.
- The main plotting boards often contained diagrams of safe zones, ... visible under the thin transluctent plotting paper.


Expanded view of Battery Control Trailer
John Porter, manager of SF-88, reports that "The Battery Control Van is 20.5 ft long, 8 ft wide, 7 ft high, with a 6.5 ft tongue."

This is a diagram of the work place. The battery switchboard is just to the right, and the computer cabinets are to the right rear.

Image from Rolf Goerigk

  1. Plotting board, thin paper & ink, largest ring is 200,000 yds (over 110 miles)
  2. T1 quick disconnect (T1 was a van that generated simulated aircraft echos and ECM interference for training purposes)
  3. IFF (Identification Friend or Foe) control panel (the latest version with the Siemens IFF/SIF) (more)
  4. ACQ control panel - control the LOPAR radar (more)
  5. HIPAR control panel - control the HIPAR radar (more))
  6. Precision Indicator (PI) - (expanded view of the PPI -about 22 degrees wide 10,000 long)
  7. Target Designator Panel - paints a ring and azimuth line to indicate designated target to Target Tracking operators - they see the same PPI and PI indications.)
  8. Plan Position Indicator (PPI) ("radar scope") - also sent by the Target Tracking operators in the Radar Control van
  9. Tactical control indicator (more)
  10. BCC indicator panel (more)
  11. Vertical plotting board 200 kyds / 100 kft (more)
  12. Status indicator lights, (White, Yellow, Red, Blue)
  13. Target detected speaker (to help arouse sleepy operator)

the switchboard in the battery control van.

From Ted Willes
I was looking at the picture of the Battery Control Van. Didn't the computer operator sit just to the right of the BCO? I recall that he was there to relay azimuth data to the LCT for emergency procedures purposes. The s/w operator was to his right. (Or is my memory even worse than I thought?) As I recall, the BCO was on the MM circut, the ACQ operator on the Command loop, and the computer operator on the tech loop. The BCO had a switch that allowed him to talk on any loop.

If you have comments or suggestions, Send e-mail to Ed Thelen

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Updated October 25, 2006