LETTER TO MR. JOHN A. BROSS FROM ALEXANDER H. FLAX

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80B01495R001100120013-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 20, 2006
• Sequence Number: 13
• Publication Date: April 3, 1968
• Content Type: LETTER

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IS) NATIONAL RECONNAISSANCE OFFICE
WASHINGTON, D.C.
April 3, 1968
This is in reply to your memorandum of March 29, 1968
relating to the GIANT SCALE photography. I would also like
to reply to your letter to me of March 13, 1968 regarding
both the photographic processing and the manner in which
the GIANT SCALE program will be responsive to USIB collection
requirements.
25X1 in a memorandum of March 13, 1968 to the Chairman of
COMIREX, DIA Member of COMIREX, affirmed that
USIB requirements Tor S theast Asia coverage would be handled
by the DIA in substantially the same manner as in other pro-
grams under the control of the Joint Reconnaissance Center
(JRC). I believe that this should satisfactorily meet na-
tional intelligence collection needs.
ps
With regard to processing, GIANT SCALE reconnaissance
film products initially follow the production route established
for support of BLACK SHIELD, Original negative processing and
priority duplication for NPIC, CIA and DIA and all Pacific
Theatre users, will be performed at 25X1
I Jan NRO certified and supported facility. This pro-
cedure is exactly parallel to that used in the BLACK SHIELD
operation. However, thereafter the GIANT SCALE original nega-
tive is returned by way of the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance
Wing, Beale AFB, California, for the reproduction of five 25X1
additional film duplicates fo r s. In the BLACK SHIELD
program the film is sent from o Eastman Kodak. However,
I do not believe that the processing of additional film dupli-
cates is in any way a critical step in the overall procedure,
and it does not compromise the early availability of photography
to NPIC on a priority basis.
25XN and DIA review(s)
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With regard to the various informal judgments and assess-
ments which have been made of the photography from the one
GIANT SCALE mission which ha" Ho far boon conducted and the
attempts to compare these results with BLACK SHIELD material,
I believe we should proceed with some caution. As you are
aware, the mission was flown in marginal weather and the air-
craft was not able to return to home base at the end of the
mission, with the result that the film romainod on board for
a longer period than normal under conditions of high tem er
a
ture which are not very conducive to maintaining the quality
y of
film. However, in spite of this, I am informed that where
weather conditions were locally good, the quality of photography
was comparable to that obtained in earlier tests of the SR-71
camera systems.
It is my belief that we do not now have any data which
would invalidate the findings of the NICE GIRL comparison tests,
which were presented to the ExCom. You will recall that in those
tests the operational objective camera (OOC), which is the main
panoramic camera on the SR-71, performed in a manner which was
judged to provide intelligence readouts comparable to those of
the OXCART camera, although with a swath width of 23 miles, as.
against 62 miles for the OXCART camera. The technical objectives
camera (TOC), which can be used to extend the swath width by
about 7 miles on each side, did not perform well and provided
only a limited capability, well below design specifications.
The fragmentary reports on the GIANT SCALE photographic material
which have reached me do not distinguish between the products
of the OOC and the TOCO This certainly must be done if we are
to understand the evaluations which are being made. In order to
assist in the NPIC evaluation of the GIANT SCALE photography,
I have suggested that the original negatives be made available
to them by DIA, which is currently in possession of these materials.
Overall, although we certainly. should learn all we can
by study and analysis of the product of the one GIANT SCALE
mission completed thus far, I do not believe we can arrive at
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any new conclusions regarding the comparability of GIANT
SCALE and BLACK SHIELD photography on the basis of that one
mission. Unfortunately, the weather over North Vietnam has
been singularly uncooperative in providing conditions suitable
for additional GIANT SCALE missions. However, as I stated
above, there is no reason on the basis of results obtained so
far, to believe that the conclusions of the NICE GIRL tests
are not valid. These conclusions, as you will recall, were
that the intelligence content derivable from the SR-71 OOC
were comparable with that obtained from the OXCART cameras;
the quality and intelligence content of photography from the
SR-71 TOC, which provide a swath extension of some 14 miles,
were marginal and below specifications.
Sincerely,
Alexander H. Flax
Mr. John A. Bross
Deputy to the DCI for National
Intelligence Programs Evaluation
Central Intelligence Agency
Washington, D. C.
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