`'OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR

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ip NATIONAL RECONNAISSANCE. OFFICE

WASHINGT0h. D.C.

18 NCY X00

MEMORANDUM FOR EXCOM MEMBERS

SUBJECT: Issues for 20 November Meeting

We have forwarded to you our financial report, issue papers,

and the Director's Report. These contain a number of issues which

will be treated on November 20.

However, there are a few issues which I believe are of overriding importance and require special emphasis at the 20 November

meeting. These have to do with the near-real-time system, crisis

response, ocean surveillance, and

The near-real-time system activity is proceeding according to

guidance received from ExCom over the last 16 months. Briefly, we

are proving out the components and, in parallel, are doing systems

studies to see that the various components can be put together into a

coherent system. We are also pricing the various approaches. It

seems to me that the issue facing the ExCom will be whether we are

taking a deliberate enough approach to system development. Present

planning is based on the assumption that we want to get an operating

system as soon as possible, short of a crash program. If we really

are sure that the requirement is well enough understood and we can

afford it, our present course is the correct one. However, if we are

not sure that we adequately understand the requirement, then I believe

we ought to be more deliberate. The recent reconnaissance problems

in the Mid-East and our inability to define what we would really want

from a near-real-time system in such a situation leads me to think that

our real needs are not yet clearly enough understood to justify a system

go-ahead.

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of some other area.

With respect to crisis response, we have recently gone through

quite an exercise at the State Department (USIB) request on just what

our systems will do in case of crisis. Here again, our thinking is not

all that mature. Before we spend money to develop a crisis capability,

I believe we should seriously consider expanding coverage with existing

Another approach to crisis reconnaissance is to maintain a

CORONA ready for launch on one-day notice. As • resent! scheduled

four CORONA'. are con idered to be back

our CORONA.s coul • e mainta e r crisis response pu

e CORONA's could be maintained at an R-25 status for about

per year, at R-15 s tus for about per year, and at R-1

status for about r year. e - status could be maintained

for FY 1972 wi curren - unch budgets, but no provisions have been

made for CORONA costs for FY 1973 and subsequent years.

The ocean surveillance issue is simply stated. The question is

whether we should develop satellites for ocean surveillance or merely use

existing NRO systems for this purpose. The Navy will probably prefer

to have their own systems, and I see no reason why they should not have

them except for the cost. It will no doubt be cheaper for us to expand

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our system than to have the Navy develop their own. The relative tradeoffs in terms of utility and cost ought to be examined. However, we need

to decide what philosophy we are following during our Friday discussions.

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