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THE JO!NT CH:CFS OF 5T ;";r;: 

WASHINGTON, D,C 2030.1 

STEM ONLY 

14 SepteITber 1969 

MEHOHANDUH FOR CAPTAIN HILSON 

_Subject: TAGBOARD 

This memorandum provides information requested in a 

memorandum from the Office of the Secretary of Defense, 

subject: JCSH 553-69. 

I. It is emphasized that the first TAGBOARD mission over 

South China or North Korea as requested by the Joint Chiefs 

of Staff is a single mission designed to test the Operational 

Concept of TAGBOARD in a hostile' environment and is not to 

compete with or replace the SR-71 or 147 HIT drone. The 

TAGBOARD system is a very costly specialized vehicle designed 

to collect against objectives of national interest in areas 

where manned operations are politically undesirable or risky, 

and it is in this role that the system would normally be 

employed. 

2 .. ' Obj ecti ves Comparison - In terms of target obj ecti ves 

in South China the coverage capabilities of the TAGBOARD and 

the 147 HIT are identical, i.e., all objectives would generally 

be accessible to both platforms. Similarly, coverage of North 

Korea by TAGBOARD and the SR-71 would be duplicative. Naps 

showing the location and type of priority targets in both 

areas are attached. 

3. Mission Comparison 

a. The initial TAGBOARD mission as proposed \'lould be 

roughly equivalent to four 147 HIT missions. This ratio 

is based strictly on target coverage. Usable range for 

the 147 HIT is roughly 1200 NN with a swath width of 

20 NH as compared to a range of 3000 N01 and a sHath 'vlidth of 

28 1\'1-1 for Tl\GBOriRD. Coverage by the SR--71 and TAGBOARD on 

a single mission is essentially the sa~e. \ 

H;\l";DL5: VI~\ BYEMAN 

CONTROL: SY::C;YEM ONLY 

BYE 78324--69 

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b.' The '147 HIT would operate from Bien Hoa APB, RVN 

with an average reaction time of approximately 24 hours. 

Launch points will be outside the radar coverage of China, 

but may be \vi thin the coverage of NVN. All launches will 

be of sufficient distance from hostile territory to allow 

the drone to be at approximately 70,000 feet prior to the 

desired entry point, allowing approximately 1200 NM of 

operation over enemy territory • 

. The' SR-7l is presently operating from Kadena APB 

for Western Pacific Operations. Reaction time for previous 

missions overflying North Korea has been 24 hours using 

Kadena as the launch and recovery point • 

. TAG BOARD - The B-52 operates from Beale APB, California with the drone launched from points near the Philippine Islands for a mission over South China and east of 

Okinawa for a mission over North Korea. The average response 

time for a TAGBOARD mission is from three to five days, 

depending on the deployment time and location of the recovery 

forces - the pacing item. Pre-positioning of recovery forces 

could reduce this range to one and one-half to two days. 

c .' 'PERFORMANCE FIGURES 

147 HIT SR-7l TAGBOARD 

SPEED 430K l830K l860K 

ALTITUDE 70-72 79-83 80-95 

RANGE 1200 3050 3000 

*RESOLUTION (DESIGN) 2.5 ft 2.0 ft(OOC) 2.0 ft 

9 in (TEOC) 

SWATH WID'I'H 20 NM 30 NM 28 NM 

NAVIGATION ACCURACY 8 NM/hr .6 NM/hr 1.5 NM/hr 

TURN RADIUS 10 NM 90 NM 92 NI1 

MANNED No Yes No 

PROBABILITY OF 80% Near 100% Near 100% 

SURVIVING A HISSION 

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"147 H/T SR-7l 

$86,000 $70,000 

TAGBOARD 

$2,400,000 

*Operational experience over North Vietnam for the 147 H/T 

drone and the SR-7l aircraft indicates the following camera 

performance can be expected (expressed in feet of ground 

resolution at nadir) : . 

00147 H/T 

5 feet 

SR-7l 

Tech Camera 2-3 feet 

Main Camera 3-3.5 feet 

Results from the TAGBOARD program to date indicate 2-2.5 feet 

resolution can be expected. 

4. a. The 147 H/T and the TAGBOARD are unmanned vehicles; 

however, the high altitude high speed characteristics of 

the TAGBOARD make it militarily and politically less 

sensitive. 

b. The TAG BOARD drone will create a sonic boom which has 

been described as a "soft double boom." 

c. The entry/exit difference for all systems is not 

considered significant as all launches will be outside 

areas where hostile action is expected to result. 

5. The probability of loss of the TAGBOARD drone without 

complete destruction of camera and other sophisticated equipment is minimal. The high explosive destruct package is 

located as near the camera as possible to insure destruction 

of the hatch with its equipment and camera. There is a remote 

possibility that film would still be available even after 

destruction. Even if this remote possibility did occur there 

would be no compromise of advanced technologies. 

TOP SECRET HANDLE; V B fA YEMAN 

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Approved for Release: 2018/11/16 C05114713 BYE 7837.4-(,7 
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COMIREX TARGETS 

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III Air 

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* Ground Force 

II Na\lal 

• BW/CW 

• Other 

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