Aiken Air Force Station Aiken Air Force Station is a closed United States Air Force General Surveillance Radar station . It is located north - northeast of Aiken , South Carolina . It was closed in 1975 . During World War II , the site was originally constructed by the United States Army Air Forces as Aiken Army Air Field . History . Aiken Army Air Field . The facility was originally constructed during World War II by the United States Army Air Forces and named Aiken Army Air Field . The airfield was constructed with three 5 ' 000 foot bituminous runways in an " A " pattern . No known auxiliary airfields were constructed . The airfield and station opened on 24 December 1942 as a satellite airfield of Morris Army Airfield , North Carolina . On 23 June 1943 the airfield was formally activated and the 66th Tactical Reconnaissance Group arrived . Two subordinate units , the 97th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron and 19th Liaison Squadron arrived the previous day . The 118th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron replaced the 97th on 29 August 1943 . The Warner Robins Air Service Command ( WRASC ) established a service group training center at the field in the fall of 1943 . The training was conducted under the auspices of the 387th Air Service Group , Daniel Field , Georgia . In May 1944 the 359th Army Air Force Base Unit was assigned host unit . It was assigned to Third Air Force , III Tactical Air Command 13 September 1944 as a group training airfield for reconnaissance units . The airfield became a replacement training airfield for single - engine fighter pilots , training on P - 40 Warhawk and P - 51 Mustang aircraft , beginning on 19 October 1944 . Active flying at the airfield ended on 28 February 1945 , and jurisdiction of the base was transferred from Third Air Force to Air Technical Service Command for disposition on 31 March 1945 . It is also known that Aiken AAF held a branch prisoner of war camp holding about 300 POWs who worked in the local forests . The dates of the POW camp are uncertain . The airfield was turned over to local government authorities afterward and was converted into Aiken Municipal Airport . Aiken Air Force Station . In 1955 the United States Air Force exercised a return right to Aiken Municipal Airport and established Aiken Air Force Station as an Air Defense Command ( ADC ) general surveillance radar station . This site was initially part of Phase II of the Mobile Radar program . Radars in this network were designated “ SM . ” Designated as SM - 159 Aiken AFS was the first Phase II Mobile Radar system to achieve operational status . During December 1955 the 861st Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron began activating AN / FPS - 3 , AN / MPS - 14 , and AN / TPS - 10 D radars . Initially the station functioned as a Ground - Control Intercept ( GCI ) and warning station . As a GCI station , the squadron ' s role was to guide interceptor aircraft toward unidentified intruders picked up on the unit ' s radar scopes . In 1958 an AN / FPS - 20 and an AN / MPS - 14 were operational . The site subsequently received an AN / FPS - 7 C search radar and an AN / FPS - 26 heightfinder radar . During 1961 Aiken AFS joined the Semi Automatic Ground Environment ( SAGE ) system , initially feeding data to DC - 09 at Gunter AFB , Alabama . After joining , the squadron was redesignated as the 861st Radar Squadron ( SAGE ) on 1 November 1961 . The radar squadron provided information 24 / 7 the SAGE Direction Center where it was analyzed to determine range , direction altitude speed and whether or not aircraft were friendly or hostile . On 31 July 1963 , the site was redesignated as NORAD ID Z - 159 . In addition , Aiken AFS was incorporated into BUIC I , a manual back - up interceptor control system . BUIC I provided limited command and control capability in the event the SAGE system was disabled . Over the years , the equipment at the station was upgraded or modified to improve the efficiency and accuracy of the information gathered by the radars . The 861st was inactivated in June 1975 . The FAA continued to operate the AN / FPS - 7C search radar for a few years , while the cantonment area was converted into a minimum - security prison . Dissatisfied with the prison setting , the FAA relocated to Lincolnton , Georgia , where today they continue to operate an ARSR - 3 search radar . The prison was shut down in the mid / late 1990s , and the entire site has since been dismantled . Units . Aiken Army Air Field Aiken Air Force Station