Gordon Blake
Encyclopedia
Gordon Aylesworth Blake (July 22, 1910 – September 1, 1997) was a U.S. Air Force lieutenant general who served from 1962-1965 as director of the National Security Agency
(NSA).
, was born in Charles City in 1910, and graduated from high school there in 1927. He was appointed in 1927 to the United States Military Academy
by the late Gilbert N. Haugen
and graduated on June 11, 1931. He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Coast Artillery Corps and detailed as a student officer to pilot training.
In October 1932, General Blake completed Primary and Advanced Flying Schools. He was transferred to the Air Corps on January 25, 1933, and was assigned with a pursuit squadron at Barksdale Field, Louisiana
. Entering the Signal School at Fort Monmouth
, New Jersey
, in July 1934, he completed the Communications Officers' Course the following June and was assigned as communications instructor at the Air Corps Technical School, at Chanute Field, Illinois.
in February 1939, General Blake was communications officer of the 18th Composite Wing. During September 1941, he acted as Communications Officer on the first land-based aircraft flight from Hawaii to the Philippines
. This flight was made in B-17 bombers sent to the Philippines as reinforcements and flew a pioneer route - Midway Island
; Wake Island
; Port Moresby, New Guinea; Darwin, Australia; Clark Field, P.I. All members of the flight were awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.
On December 7, 1941, he was base operations officer (in the rank of major) at Hickam Field and was awarded the Silver Star
for gallantry in action that day. He became operations officer, Seventh Air Force Base Command, was promoted to lieutenant colonel
, and spent the first months of World War II
supervising operation of the airplane ferry route to Australia
via Christmas Island
- Canton Island - Fiji
- New Caledonia
.
In October 1942, he shifted back to communications work and commanded Army Airways Communications System in the Pacific for the rest of World War II, with the exception of the period October 1943 to January 1944, when on temporary duty in Alaska
where he established the Air Communications Office for Alaska. He was promoted to colonel
in November 1942. On August 28, 1945, he accompanied a special 150-man task force into Japan
to prepare for airborne occupation troop landings on August 30, 1945.
by Admiral Nimitz plus an oak leaf cluster
to the Legion of Merit by the War Department
, the Air Medal
with oak leaf cluster, and battle stars for participation in the following campaigns: Central Pacific, Eastern Mandates, New Guinea, North Solomons, Guadalcanal, Papua and South Philippines, Luzon and Western Pacific. He returned from overseas in November 1945, and in January 1946, was appointed deputy commander of the Airways and Air Communications Service at Langley Field, Virginia
.
Entering the Air War College
at Maxwell Air Force Base
, Alabama
, in August 1947, General Blake graduated the following June and went to research and development work at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
, Ohio
. Between 1948 and 1951, he was with the Electronics Subdivision of the Engineering Division and served as chief of the Armament Laboratory. In the summer of 1951, he was placed in charge of 12 development laboratories and promoted to brigadier general
. His final assignment at Wright Field was as vice commander from June 1952 to January 1953.
Transferred to Air Force Headquarters in January 1953, General Blake was appointed deputy director of communications in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, becoming director of communications the following month. Many changes to the U.S. Air Force system for global communications and navigation, including pioneer operational circuits using tropospheric scatter
communications for the first time, were carried out during General Blake's tour as director of communications.
He was named assistant deputy chief of staff for operations on June 2, 1956. In this capacity he served on the Permanent Joint Board for Defense, Canada - U.S., under which many defense projects such as the Dewline radar network were planned between the two countries. During the latter part of his Washington assignment, he was given the aeronautical rating of command pilot and was promoted to permanent major general
, the highest permanent rank in the regular service.
General Blake left Washington on January 4, 1957, to become commander of the U.S. Air Force Security Service
, a major command of the U.S. Air Force with Headquarters in San Antonio. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal
for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding service to the United States as commander, U.S. Air Force Security Service.
On September 1, 1959, he was assigned as vice commander in chief and chief of staff, Pacific Air Forces, the air arm of the joint Pacific Command with headquarters in Hawaii
.
General Blake came to Headquarters Continental Air Command in July 1961 as commander-designate. He assumed command of CONAC September 30, 1961 and became lieutenant general
October 1, 1961.
General Blake assumed the position of director, National Security Agency
, at Fort George G. Meade
, Maryland
, July 1, 1962, which he held until his retirement in 1965.
The U.S. Air Force Aircraft Save Award is named after him. It is awarded for any action taken by an air traffic controller or airfield manager that results in the safe recovery of an imperiled airborne aircraft or help given to an endangered aircraft on the ground.
National Security Agency
The National Security Agency/Central Security Service is a cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and foreign signals intelligence, as well as protecting U.S...
(NSA).
Early life & training
Gordon, son of George and Cecelia Blake of Charles City, IowaCharles City, Iowa
Charles City is a city in Floyd County, Iowa, United States. The population was 7,652 at the 2010 census a decrease of 160, or 2%, from 7,812 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Floyd County. Charles City is a significant commercial and transportation center for the area, located on U.S...
, was born in Charles City in 1910, and graduated from high school there in 1927. He was appointed in 1927 to the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
by the late Gilbert N. Haugen
Gilbert N. Haugen
Gilbert Nelson Haugen was a seventeen-term Republican U.S. Representative from Iowa's 4th congressional district, then located in northeastern Iowa. For nearly five years, he was the longest-serving member of the House...
and graduated on June 11, 1931. He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Coast Artillery Corps and detailed as a student officer to pilot training.
In October 1932, General Blake completed Primary and Advanced Flying Schools. He was transferred to the Air Corps on January 25, 1933, and was assigned with a pursuit squadron at Barksdale Field, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
. Entering the Signal School at Fort Monmouth
Fort Monmouth
Fort Monmouth was an installation of the Department of the Army in Monmouth County, New Jersey. The post is surrounded by the communities of Eatontown, Tinton Falls and Oceanport, New Jersey, and is located about 5 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. The post covers nearly of land, from the Shrewsbury...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, in July 1934, he completed the Communications Officers' Course the following June and was assigned as communications instructor at the Air Corps Technical School, at Chanute Field, Illinois.
World War II
Going to HawaiiHawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
in February 1939, General Blake was communications officer of the 18th Composite Wing. During September 1941, he acted as Communications Officer on the first land-based aircraft flight from Hawaii to the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. This flight was made in B-17 bombers sent to the Philippines as reinforcements and flew a pioneer route - Midway Island
Midway Atoll
Midway Atoll is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, near the northwestern end of the Hawaiian archipelago, about one-third of the way between Honolulu, Hawaii, and Tokyo, Japan. Unique among the Hawaiian islands, Midway observes UTC-11 , eleven hours behind Coordinated Universal Time and one hour...
; Wake Island
Wake Island
Wake Island is a coral atoll having a coastline of in the North Pacific Ocean, located about two-thirds of the way from Honolulu west to Guam east. It is an unorganized, unincorporated territory of the United States, administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior...
; Port Moresby, New Guinea; Darwin, Australia; Clark Field, P.I. All members of the flight were awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.
On December 7, 1941, he was base operations officer (in the rank of major) at Hickam Field and was awarded the Silver Star
Silver Star
The Silver Star is the third-highest combat military decoration that can be awarded to a member of any branch of the United States armed forces for valor in the face of the enemy....
for gallantry in action that day. He became operations officer, Seventh Air Force Base Command, was promoted to lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of major and just below the rank of colonel. It is equivalent to the naval rank of commander in the other uniformed services.The pay...
, and spent the first months of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
supervising operation of the airplane ferry route to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
via Christmas Island
Christmas Island
The Territory of Christmas Island is a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean. It is located northwest of the Western Australian city of Perth, south of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, and ENE of the Cocos Islands....
- Canton Island - Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
- New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
.
In October 1942, he shifted back to communications work and commanded Army Airways Communications System in the Pacific for the rest of World War II, with the exception of the period October 1943 to January 1944, when on temporary duty in Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
where he established the Air Communications Office for Alaska. He was promoted to colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
in November 1942. On August 28, 1945, he accompanied a special 150-man task force into Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
to prepare for airborne occupation troop landings on August 30, 1945.
Post-World War II
For his work in World War II he was awarded the Legion of MeritLegion of Merit
The Legion of Merit is a military decoration of the United States armed forces that is awarded for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements...
by Admiral Nimitz plus an oak leaf cluster
Oak leaf cluster
An oak leaf cluster is a common device which is placed on U.S. Army and Air Force awards and decorations to denote those who have received more than one bestowal of a particular decoration. The number of oak leaf clusters typically indicates the number of subsequent awards of the decoration...
to the Legion of Merit by the War Department
United States Department of War
The United States Department of War, also called the War Department , was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army...
, the Air Medal
Air Medal
The Air Medal is a military decoration of the United States. The award was created in 1942, and is awarded for meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight.-Criteria:...
with oak leaf cluster, and battle stars for participation in the following campaigns: Central Pacific, Eastern Mandates, New Guinea, North Solomons, Guadalcanal, Papua and South Philippines, Luzon and Western Pacific. He returned from overseas in November 1945, and in January 1946, was appointed deputy commander of the Airways and Air Communications Service at Langley Field, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
.
Entering the Air War College
Air War College
The Air War College is a part of the United States Air Force's Air University, headquartered at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama. Air University's higher headquarters is Air Education and Training Command headquartered at Randolph Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas. The Air War...
at Maxwell Air Force Base
Maxwell Air Force Base
Maxwell Air Force Base , officially known as Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base, is a United States Air Force installation under the Air Education and Training Command . The installation is located in Montgomery, Alabama, US. It was named in honor of Second Lieutenant William C...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, in August 1947, General Blake graduated the following June and went to research and development work at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base in Greene and Montgomery counties in the state of Ohio. It includes both Wright and Patterson Fields, which were originally Wilbur Wright Field and Fairfield Aviation General Supply Depot. Patterson Field is located approximately...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. Between 1948 and 1951, he was with the Electronics Subdivision of the Engineering Division and served as chief of the Armament Laboratory. In the summer of 1951, he was placed in charge of 12 development laboratories and promoted to brigadier general
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...
. His final assignment at Wright Field was as vice commander from June 1952 to January 1953.
Transferred to Air Force Headquarters in January 1953, General Blake was appointed deputy director of communications in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, becoming director of communications the following month. Many changes to the U.S. Air Force system for global communications and navigation, including pioneer operational circuits using tropospheric scatter
Tropospheric scatter
Tropospheric scatter is a method of transmitting and receiving microwave radio signals over considerable distances – often up to 300 km...
communications for the first time, were carried out during General Blake's tour as director of communications.
He was named assistant deputy chief of staff for operations on June 2, 1956. In this capacity he served on the Permanent Joint Board for Defense, Canada - U.S., under which many defense projects such as the Dewline radar network were planned between the two countries. During the latter part of his Washington assignment, he was given the aeronautical rating of command pilot and was promoted to permanent major general
Major general (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a two-star general-officer rank, with the pay grade of O-8. Major general ranks above brigadier general and below lieutenant general...
, the highest permanent rank in the regular service.
General Blake left Washington on January 4, 1957, to become commander of the U.S. Air Force Security Service
U.S. Air Force Security Service
The United States Air Force Security Service was essentially the United States Air Force's cryptographic intelligence branch; its motto was Freedom through Vigilance. It was created in October 1948 and operated until 1979, when the branch was re-designated the Electronic Security Command...
, a major command of the U.S. Air Force with Headquarters in San Antonio. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal
Distinguished Service Medal (United States)
The Distinguished Service Medal is the highest non-valorous military and civilian decoration of the United States military which is issued for exceptionally meritorious service to the government of the United States in either a senior government service position or as a senior officer of the United...
for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding service to the United States as commander, U.S. Air Force Security Service.
On September 1, 1959, he was assigned as vice commander in chief and chief of staff, Pacific Air Forces, the air arm of the joint Pacific Command with headquarters in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
.
General Blake came to Headquarters Continental Air Command in July 1961 as commander-designate. He assumed command of CONAC September 30, 1961 and became lieutenant general
Lieutenant General (United States)
In the United States Army, the United States Air Force and the United States Marine Corps, lieutenant general is a three-star general officer rank, with the pay grade of O-9. Lieutenant general ranks above major general and below general...
October 1, 1961.
General Blake assumed the position of director, National Security Agency
National Security Agency
The National Security Agency/Central Security Service is a cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and foreign signals intelligence, as well as protecting U.S...
, at Fort George G. Meade
Fort George G. Meade
Fort George G. Meade is a United States Army installation that includes the Defense Information School, the United States Army Field Band, and the headquarters of United States Cyber Command, the National Security Agency, and the Defense Courier Service...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, July 1, 1962, which he held until his retirement in 1965.
The U.S. Air Force Aircraft Save Award is named after him. It is awarded for any action taken by an air traffic controller or airfield manager that results in the safe recovery of an imperiled airborne aircraft or help given to an endangered aircraft on the ground.