Jack Alston Crichton

[Steve Thomas]

5 hours ago, Paul Brancato said:

Tom - Interesting link. I think it’s curious that Colonel Frank M Brandstetter, who apparently was in the same 488th Army Intelligence Detachment, reported to ACSI - Assistent Chief of Staff Intelligence (Army), for 18 years. Even though your link is not well sourced the info about Pegasus is curious. There is not a lot about it available on the internet. Maybe there are hidden chains of command within the military.

Paul,

 

In his 1991 study of Military Intelligence Detachments,

http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a233391.pdf

Thomas Cagley wrote on pp. 11-12, “The aforementioned FORSCOM (forces command) major evaluation of STRATMIDS (Strategic Military Intelligence Detachments) in 1989 placed most of the units under operational control of two agencies, the Defense Intelligece Agency (DIA) and the Army Intelligence Agency (AIA) (see Table II-2 p. 14)

I'm not sure how these allocations were made, but I think it had to do with the geographic area in question, Africa, Europe, etc.

Peter Dale Scott in his book, Deep Politics wrote:

Researcher Larry Haapanen has discovered the 488th seems to have had its own direct chain of command linking it to Washington. In an esoteric publication entitled The Military Order of World Wars (Turner Publishing Company, 1997, p. 120), he found that Crichton "commanded the 488th MID (Strategic), reporting directly to the Army Chief of Intelligence and the Defense Intelligence Agency." [56]. And in 1970 Haapanen was told by Crichton’s commander in the Texas Army Reserve, Lt. Col. Whitmeyer, that Crichton's unit did its summer training at the Pentagon.

 

Russ Baker wrote in Family of Secrets,

https://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/sociopolitica/esp_sociopol_bush59_10.htm

"In the fall of 1963, about two months before JFK’s assassination, the two political neophytes Jack Crichton and George H.W. Bush both decided to mount GOP races for statewide office.

 

The following year, they would head the Texas GOP’s ticket, with Crichton the nominee for governor and Bush for U.S. Senate. Both used the same lawyer, Pat Holloway, who worked out of the Republic National Bank Building.

The man who recruited them as candidates, state GOP chairman Peter O’Donnell, would several years later be forced by newspaper revelations to admit that his family foundation was a conduit for CIA funds.

In his oral history, Crichton couches his relationship with Bush in benign and casual terms. He says that he and Poppy, "spoke from the same podiums and got to be fairly good acquaintances."

Their appearances on behalf of the Texas Republican Party evolved into a private friendship that continued over the years.

"When he was head of the CIA, I called him one day and I said, ‘George, I’m coming to Washington, would you have time to play tennis?’ And he said ‘Yeah.’ He said, ’How would you like to play at The White House?’ And I said ‘Man, that’d be a real deal.’ So he said, ‘Well, I’ll have you a partner’."

 

Perhaps that was what the author of the Internet posting cited earlier had in mind, when he wrote that Crichton "reported directly to the President".

 

Steve Thomas

[Steve Thomas]

On 4/14/2018 at 4:23 PM, Tom Hume said:

Hi Steve,

My guess is that you're not going find information about the 488th, an Army Reserve outfit, by searching Texas National Guard records. Have you tried the 90th Military History Detachment (GEN Richard G. Stilwell United States Army Reserve Center, Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio, Texas)?

Tom
 

Tom,

 

My guess would be the 49th Armored Division.

 

An Introduction to the history of the 49th (Lone Star) Armored Division (1947 -1963)

Brian Schenk

http://texasmilitaryforcesmuseum.org//49ad/49division.htm

“Soon after being designated as a "combat-ready" unit in 1955, the 49th was assigned as one of the six National Guard divisions making up the Ready Reserve Strategic Army Force, a first-priority reserve component. The designation gave the division higher priority for newer equipment and advanced training. “

“Command Post Exercises (CPX) called "Cloverleaf" became a part of the command staff's training beginning in 1957. Conducted by Headquarters, 4th U. S. Army, the Cloverleaf exercises were based at Fort Sam Houston, in San Antonio, Texas.”

 

From: Our Man In Acapulco: The Life and Times of Col. Frank M. Brandstetter by Rodney P. Carlisle and Dominic J. Monetta (University of North Texas Press, 1999)

 

p. 121. “While at the Presidio, Brandy had prepared a draft of a Domestic Emergency Plan, which he revised and submitted in 1954 as part of the Cloverleaf I exercise, to G-2 of the Fourth Army Command in Dallas, Colonel M.H. Truly.”

 

pp. 127+ “after leaving Jamaica in early 1957, Brandy served as assistant troop commander and provost marshal of the Fourth U.S. Army Area Intelligence School for two weeks in August, 1957.

 

These intelligence school sessions reviewed procedures and studies in a wide variety of areas for reserve intelligence officers including a review of a Central Index of Investigative and Domestic Subversive files.

 

The Irving Daily News Texan from Irving, Texas

May 10, 1966

Page 3

https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/48695616/

 

"Green Door Mystery Solved By Nat. Guard Two Texas National Guard divisions, the 49th Armored Division -- which has a unit in Irving and the 36th Infantry, both learned what was behind the "green door" in Houston this weekend. But mum is the word. The green door just happened to be the color scheme of barracks at Ellington Air Force Base at Houston where one of the U. S. Army’s largest map maneuvers — Exercise Cloverleaf — was field under tight security precautions to train more than 1,000 staff officers and key enlisted men of the National Guard and Army Reserve from a five - state area."...

 

Read up on the Cloverleaf Exercises. Scared the beejeesus out of me.

 

Steve Thomas

 

[Paul Brancato]

I think from doing a little more searching that the word Strategic refers to oil. 

[Steve Thomas]

9 hours ago, Paul Brancato said:

I think from doing a little more searching that the word Strategic refers to oil. 

Paul,

 

Yes, strategic is more a global outlook as opposed to a tactical or operational outlook. Looking at a problem from a strategic viewpoint would look at a region's natural resources (like oil), as well its geographic, economic, transportation, social or cultural background, linguistics, etc.

 

Acting on a tip from Larry Hancock, I was reading this the other day:

Cultural Perspectives, Geopolitics &

Energy Security of Eurasia:

Is the Next Global Conflict Imminent?

 

http://www.armyupress.army.mil/Portals/7/combat-studies-institute/csi-books/cultural-perspectives.pdf

 

Read the conclusion by Dr. Mahir J. Ibrahimov on page 201, “The world has approached a very dangerous point of tension with multiple regional and global threats and conflicting interests. If the current trends of the regional and global geopolitics continue, the world would potentially see another major global conflict during the next 5 to 10 years. The world powers need to act responsibly and apply all their influence and joint efforts to avoid such a scenario, which could be potentially disastrous for the entire mankind. Without exaggeration, one can say that understanding the cultures, history and mentality of other countries and regions will be the core of the right policies and related decisions.”

 

Steve Thomas

[Tom Hume]

While looking into this fascinating batch of Colonels, I ran into a couple of slightly interesting things. Below is a link to the U.S. Army Center of Military History, and there is a search engine that might turn up some interesting stuff. There might even be people answering email questions. 

https://history.army.mil/index.html

And I had not seen this before: Below is a link to a Civil Defense website where you can take a virtual tour of the Old Dallas Civil Defense Emergency Command Post that was officially opened on April 1st, 1962.

http://www.civildefensemuseum.com/fallout/dallaseoc.html

And once again, Steve, at the General Richard G. Stilwell United States Army Reserve Center at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas, there are three Army Reserve Historians (The 90th Military History Detachment) that I feel sure are sitting by their phones waiting to answer your questions about the 488th.

Have you found out if Colonel M.H. Truly was related to Roy?
 

Tom

[Steve Thomas]

37 minutes ago, Tom Hume said:

Have you found out if Colonel M.H. Truly was related to Roy?
 

Tom

Tom,

 

No. I haven't, but I did run across a couple of interesting references to an M.H. Truly including this one:

Colonel M.H.Truly, G2 of Region III of the 112th CIC at Fort Sam Houston is writing to the Assistant Chief of Staff, G2 in Washington, D.C. in April of 1955 about a spate of UFO sightings in Texas and New Mexico in early April, 1955.

https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://photovni.free.fr/f.o.i.a%252010/f.o.i.a%252010.htm&prev=search

This is a translation from the French, I believe. The two thumbnails will take you the two pages of Truly's memo here:

http://photovni.free.fr/f.o.i.a%2010/images/storm1_jpg.jpg

http://photovni.free.fr/f.o.i.a%2010/images/storm2_jpg.jpg

 

MINISTRY OF AIR FORCE

Washington DC

September 1, 1977

Lieutenant General Edward L.Crow, US Air Force

National Administration of Aeronautics and Space

400 Maryland Avenue

Washington DC 20546

Dear General Crow:

Here is the brochure, and the standard answer to the public about UFO investigations, which you requested.

I sincerely hope for your success in preventing the reopening of UFO investigations.

Truly

Charles H Senn Colonel USAF

A hurricane of UFOs that can not be attributed to artillery fire, missiles or rockets
FOIA April 15, 1955

TRANSLATION

FOURTH ARMY HEADQUARTERS

FORT SAM HOUSTON TEXAS

Unidentified aerial phenomenon object

A Auxiliary Commander of the General Staff

Ministry of the Armed Forces

Washington 25, DC

1. Excerpts from Summary Information , Region III, 112th CIC Detachment, El Paso, Texas, dated April 9, 1955, and the San Antonio Express, dated
April 7, 1955, you are sent under this envelope for Information.

2. The Summary Information , of Region III, 112th CIC Detachment, dated April 9, 1955, is as follows:

On April 8, 1955, reports indicated that a "hurricane" of unidentified objects rained in southern New Mexico from El Paso, and from Texas from April 1, 1955 to April 5, 1955. A witness described the object as "a flash of light with three red lines behind him." According to the spokesperson of the Army and the Air Force, none of these events could be attributed to the shots artillery, rockets, guided missiles or other military activities.

Source: El Paso Herald-Post , 8 April 1955. (F-6)

(RC Commentary: The Office of the Auxiliary Chief of the General Staff, 02, the Air Defense and Air Missile Center at Fort Bliss, Texas, was unable to provide any additional information.) "

3. The San Antonio Express of April 7, 1955, was carrying a dispatch from "United Press" dated Albuquerque, New Mexico, dated April 6, 1955, signaling a "third mysterious fireball" seen in the south New Mexico at that time was not, according to scientists at the Institute of Meteorites of the University of New Mexico, a meteorite. It was said that the investigators would not find any fragments of the object. Another "object", supposedly seen for "apparently crashing and exploding near Lordsburg, New Mexico on the previous date, had disappeared" in an intense conflagration. Another report described "a green fireball" allegedly sighted in New Mexico on April 5, 1955, "in northern Albuquerque, 200 miles away." The main source added that there were "unconfirmed" reports of a fourth outstanding fireball the day before in Lordsburg. (C-6)

4. Any additional information relating to this subject will be sent to your Office upon receipt.

MH TRULY

Steve Thomas

 

 

 

[Paul Brancato]

Love that. Good find Steve. It looks like the info on UFO sighting was sent to the Assistant Chief of Staff Army Intelligence, inotherwords ACSI. Hmm. It’s also mildly suggestive that the ww2 photo showing the five officers on page 3 of this thread identifies Crichton as being a member of the 487th bomber group. Coincidence?

Great link Tom. At least we know for sure there was an underground bunker. It would make certain sense that this bunker would be equipped with sophisticated and secure communications equipment. 

Edited April 18, 2018 by Paul Brancato

[Steve Thomas]

14 hours ago, Tom Hume said:

And I had not seen this before: Below is a link to a Civil Defense website where you can take a virtual tour of the Old Dallas Civil Defense Emergency Command Post that was officially opened on April 1st, 1962.

http://www.civildefensemuseum.com/fallout/dallaseoc.html

 

Stringfellow and Biggio were working the police radio at the Fairgrounds on 11/22/63

“Army Apparently didn't tell Commission of Oswald's Alias”

Dallas Morning News March 19, 1978

in the Weisberg Collection

http://jfk.hood.edu/Collection/Weisberg%20Subject%20Index%20Files/F%20Disk/FBI/FBI%20Records%20Release%2012-7-77%20News%20Accounts/Item%20069.pdf

 

“However, (Bill) Biggio, who was directing police intelligence communications at the Fair Park office the day of the assassination...,” Former Dallas police Capt. W. P. Gannaway, who commanded the special service bureau in which Biggio worked, said if Army intelligence in San Antonio or Dallas "had any information pertaining to Oswald, we didn't know about it." “Don Stringfellow, a fellow police intelligence officer working with Biggio at the Fair Park office, was named as the source of information in a secret cable the night of Nov. 22 from Army intelligence in Texas to the U.S. Strike Command at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida. The cable said that information "obtained from Oswald revealed that he had defected to Cuba in 1959 and is a card-carrying member of the Communist Party." THIS CABLE, containing false information, was sent to an Army-Air Force operation set up three years earlier to provide a quick-reacting strike force in case of enemy attack. “

 

Steve Thomas