THE 6313th AIR POLICE SQUADRON

In 1960, the 7th TDS Air Police Section was transferred en masse to the 6313th Air Police Squadron. (Transfer Orders - Side One) (Transfer Orders - Side 2) From that time on, the 6313th provided security support for the 7th TDS area as well as for the two large nuclear aircraft alert areas, the 3rd Aviation Depot Squadron (3rd ADS) nuclear weapons storage area (3rd ADS Air Policemen were also transferred to the 6313th AP Squadron), and other miscellaneous posts on Kadena AB, Okinawa. Some of us learned for the first time what it was like to stand guard duty on a flight line (humping the ramp) in all kinds of weather. Morale was extremely low in 6313th where Air Policemen assigned to security posts worked a punishing shift rotation (30 days on a single shift of either days, swings, or "mids" with a couple of days off during this time period). There were at least two suicides among 6313th APs during this time. A few lucky folks were assigned to duty with the Base Police or with the Ryukyuan Armed Service Police (RASP).

The drastic shift arrangement and resultant poor morale in the 6313th was actually a result of a change in U.S./Japanese diplomatic policy. In early 1960, the U.S. and Japan renegotiated and revised the 1952 Japanese Security Treaty which had given America carte blanche in matters of security, including the right to store nuclear weapons in Japan and to launch them without consultation. Student protests prompted Japan to reexamine its position and to call for a revision to the treaty. The 1960 revision obliged Washington to consult Tokyo about any changes in U.S. military equipment in Japan.

The treaty required that there be no more nukes in Japan and, as a result, nuclear armed aircraft from Itazuke AB, Japan were moved to stand alert at Kadena AB since, at that time, Okinawa was a U.S. protectorate and was not considered Japanese soil for purposes of the treaty. Approximately 20 Itazuke F-100s along with Mark-28 nuclear weapons, pilots, and maintenance personnel were assigned temporary duty to Kadena. Unfortunately, the aircraft and nukes did not come equipped with Air Policemen to guard them. That task fell to the 6313th Air Police Squadron resulting in severe understaffing, unreasonable shift schedules, and downright mutiny on the part of some 6313th Air Policemen. There was a group of 10 to 20 APs who claimed that, because of mental fatigue created by the horrendous work schedule, they were emotionally unfit to guard nuclear weapons. These individuals were court marshaled, stripped of all rank, and put on special "grunt" details prior to being shipped back to the "CONUS" with general discharges.

In July 1960, Kadena also received a few RB-47s from Yokota AB. On July 1, 1960, a SAC RB-47 was flying over the Arctic, north of the U.S.S.R. Although the plane was over international waters, a Soviet MiG shot it down. The incident prompted President Eisenhower, who was slated to visit Japan and Okinawa in the very near future, to announce there were "no B-47s stationed in Japan." Within hours of his announcement, the B-47s showed up at Kadena. Since SAC required that its aircraft be guarded by SAC Air Policemen, Yokota did send their own APs TDY to Kadena. We got to know these guys very well since they became temporary members of the 6313th flights. Some of us who went on to SAC bases when we returned to the States also got to be on very familiar terms with those B-47s. In those days, no one got to spend more time with nuclear weapons-equipped aircraft than an Air Policeman or a Security Policeman on duty.

When Ashiya AB in Kyushu, Japan was closing in the summer of 1960, many APs from that base were transferred to the 6313th. Tom Fitch was one of those "lucky" APs. Here he shares photos from the 6313th APS and from the 483rd APS, Ashiya, Japan.

Tom Fitch - 1959 Tom (Far Right) Tom - 1960
Base Police 6313th APS, Kadena AB, Okinawa

                      Tom                          R to L: Chuck Preston            R to L: Jim Crittenden                     Tom
                                                                     Jim Crittenden                         Chuck Preston
                                                                     Tom                                          Tom

"I was assigned to security on the northern side of the Island while they conducted a F-105 (Thunder Chief) demonstration - bombing, missiles and strafing. As one fighter made a speed dive firing his Gatling 20 mm cannon, the pilot pulled up sharply. He began to lose control and fired his canopy. However, he did maintain control and started flying back towards Kadena. A General ordered me to follow in the truck in the event of a crash or ejection. I talked to the pilot all the way back to base where he made an uneventful landing. As I approached the aircraft at its parked position, I notice the vertical stabilizer (tail) was warped severely. The pilot was wind burned all around his face where there was exposed skin. After being treated at the hospital, he and I went out for a drink and dinner. He appeared genuinely thankful that I was able to talk with him as he fought for control and returned to Kadena."

483rd Air Police Operations 483rd Squadron Sign
L to R: Airmen: Parker, Fitch, and McDermott

                                                                             Photo courtesy of Dave Fisher
                                                                     483rd Air Policemen
                                                      (May 1960)
                L to R: Stevenson, McZeil, Dave Fisher, Huckaby, Hovis, Eddie Wong*, and Apker.
                                                    (Taken at Ashiya Air Show)