8-61 ADA

The 8th Battalion, 61st Air Defense Artillery Regiment (8-61 ADA) traces its lineage back to the original 61st Coast Artillery, first constituted in 1917. Reactivated and redesignated several times, the 8-61 ADA served throughout the Cold War as part of the United States Army’s air defense network, including deployments in Europe to protect NATO allies from aerial threats. The unit was equipped with various missile systems, such as the Nike-Hercules, providing critical airspace protection against potential Soviet attacks. Over time, as air defense strategies evolved, the battalion was inactivated, but its legacy remains an important chapter in U.S. Army air defense history.