Evening star., 1960-08-08
Boosts Readiness
OF Armed Forces


tactics and attitudes, I have
ordered the military services to
take certain practical measures
affecting the readiness and pos
ture of our military commands.
These include the deployment
Of additional aircraft carriers
to the 9th and 7th Fleets. A
number of BAT medium bomb
ers and their accompanying
tankerS, which had been sched-
uled to be phased out of our
forces, will be retained in serv-
ice for the time being: and the
tempo Of operation of the Stra-
tegic Air Command will be in
creased and its deployment
further dispersed. The readi-
ness Of our ground forces will
be further improved by ex-
panding the number and scope
of strategic field and airborne
exercises.
I have also directed expan-
sion OF certain long range pro-
grams. The Strategic Air Com
mand capability to conduct a
continuous airborne alert will
be further strengthened. More
funds will be applied to the
modernization of the Army
combat equipment and to mill
tary airlift. Additional effort
will be devoted to the develop
ment of the BIO and the re-
connaiSSance satellite SAMOS.
During the congressional re-
cess we have made extraordi-
nary progress in testing one of
Americas most importan t
weapons syStems-the Polaris
BalliStic Missile Submarine. It
is with great satisfaction that
1 report to the Congress that
the first test firing of the Po-
laris missile from the sub
merged nuclear su b m arin e
George Washington had rifle
shot accuracy at great ranges.
Never in my long military
career has a weapon system of
such complexity been brought
from its original conception to
the operations stage with
such Sureness and speed-an
achievement that in it's en-
TREY has taken less than five
years.
The time is now right to in
crease the scope of the Polaris
program and five instead of
three more submarines have
been started this fiscal year.
Furthermore, I have directed
the development of a much
longer-range version of the
Polaris missile, which will give
America a weapon of even
greater versatility, power and
invulnerability.
The Defense Department will
carry out these defense meas
ures with its available resources
insofar as possible. Measures
pertaining to weapons systems
programs will be carried out by
utilizing appropriations already
made in this session. Total
resources are adequate, al
though a modest increase in
military personnel and in oper-
alton and maintenance funds
may prove to be necessary to
carry out the readiness meas
ures. If such an increase should
be required, I shall promptly
request the necessary funds.
incidentally, provision will
have to be made after the rst
OF the year to fund the civilian
pay increases imposed by Con-
gress a few weeks ago. These
will add permanently to our
defense costs some 5000 million
a year.
Once again I assure the Con-
greSs that this Nations military
power is second to none and
will be kept that way. Our long
rang strategic bombers and air.
to-ground missiles, our inter-
mediate and long-range ballistic
missiles. our Polaris submarines,
our attack carriers, the tactical
air units overseas, the air
defense forces, and the atomic
and conventional firepower of
our ground forces worldwide
are indeed a retaliatory and