Radar Bombing Range | Ashland

On February 23rd, 1967, an allegorical soap opera you may have heard of called 'Star Trek' aired an episode in which computers were to determine the damage done by a virtual attack, and orders were issued for the casualties of said virtual attack to be killed. Fortunately, in the real world, we used computers and other equipment to simulate and determine damage done by an attack -- without requiring casualties to report for extermination.

From the 70s through the early 1990s the town of Ashland was host to a high tech virtual bombing range. Keep in mind this wasn't a live bombing range like Milford ; if that were the case the Aroostook River valley would have been a dry, irradiated crack. These bombing runs were all done by computer and radar, with some help from a B-52 in the air. This article from the range's closure in 1992 states that the facility had a 1000 square mile effective "combat" rage and a "sophisticated emitter system and radar used to determine accuracy of weapons delivery systems."

According to a local, before the Ashland radar range was a brick-and-mortar (and barbed wire) site it was a bunch of truck trailers sitting on the top of a hill. Apparently, back during the 60's the crew apparently were willing to indulge any locals that wanted a tour. Fortunately, The County was probably too cold for Soviet Operatives. 

Balmy.

The first reference I can find to the Ashland radar site in local media was on April 3rd, 1973 when the Bangor Daily News ran a small piece titled "Ashland Target of Mock Bombs" in which it described several B-52's flying over the town, "dropping" bombs - which were really just electronic tones to show up on a radar screen. At this point the site was mobile and appeared to be somewhat tertiary to the Louis Blotner Bomb Scoring Range farther to the north in Caribou.

According to this Bangor Daily article from 1975, the site was responsible for scoring simulated bomb drops as well as for determining the theoretical efficacy of attempts to penetrate enemy defenses with electronic countermeasures. B-52s would fly over the site, the RBS (Radar Bomb Scoring) facility would lock onto them as they flew over Ashland between Bangor and Houlton. A tone would be transmitted between the bomber and the scoring site to analyze the 'bombing run.' The site brought 50 people into the sleepy town to work, and was planned to remain in existence even after significant winding down of forces at Loring AFB.

50-60 People would commute from Presque Isle to here, passing through this gate.

Bombers would fly proximate to the facility, simulating bomb drops - and the facility would simulate the return of electronic countermeasures (basically, trying to mess with the bomber's navigational systems.)

This article from 1979  indicates that the Ashland radar site is indeed a separate facility from the Louis Blotner Bomb Scoring Range. It also notes that the site was the first to bring together "operations, maintenance, power, training, administration and the commander under one roof." This BDN article from 1978 indicates that the site in Ashland is actually quite low key, "the project consists of a 72 by 77- foot single-story cement block building."

During its time operating in Ashland the site wasn't without a bit of notoriety; it was a part of some pretty significant war-game like activity in 1983. It won a national award in 1985 for its role in "helping (the) bombers make precise hits relatively close to enemy lines" through the training exercises in which the site was crucial.

Additionally, my local source would go on to state that he would take great pleasure in watching the B-52's buzz over at such a low altitude, but also indicated that he'd occasionally see B-52 sized craft (according to running lights) but with no sound. No local media indicated the presence of B-2 Spirits in the region during that time.The site was deactivated in 1993, and transferred to the [REDACTED] by the General Services Administration in 1999 after talk of becoming a broadband internet communications hub in 1996. The broadband communications hub idea didn't get off the ground.

With permission from the organization that now has control of the Ashland bombing range, I went to the site and took the photographs you saw in this post. I've done my best to remove direct references to the site's location as business still goes on there - granted, business of a wholly different nature. The barbed wire fence appears to be original to the site.