Donald Theis

The 608th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron (AC&W Sq.) was a United States Air Force unit activated in 1948 as part of the expanding network of radar stations established during the early Cold War. Initially stationed at Snelling Air Force Station, Minnesota, the squadron provided vital radar surveillance and air defense for the upper Midwest, monitoring for potential Soviet bomber incursions. The 608th AC&W Squadron played a key role in the Ground-Control Intercept (GCI) mission, guiding interceptor aircraft to unidentified targets detected on radar. The unit was inactivated in 1963 as improvements in radar technology and changes in air defense strategy led to the consolidation of radar operations.