Editing Midway Atoll (section)

===Korean and Vietnam Wars===
From August 1, 1941, to 1945, U.S. military forces occupied Midway. In 1950, the Navy decommissioned [[Naval Air Station Midway]], only to re-commission it again to support the [[Korean War]]. Thousands of troops on ships and aircraft stopped at Midway for refueling and emergency repairs. Midway Island was a Naval Air Facility from 1968 to September{{nbsp}}10, 1993.

With about 3,500 people living on Sand Island, Midway supported the U.S. troops during the [[Vietnam War]]. In June 1969, President [[Richard Nixon]] met [[South Vietnam]]ese President [[Nguyen Van Thieu]] at the Officer-in-Charge house, also known as "Midway House".<ref>{{cite web |title=President Nixon and President Thieu Meet at Midway Island, June 8, 1969 |url=https://www.nixonfoundation.org/2014/06/president-nixon-president-thieu-meet-midway-island-june-8-1969/ |website=Richard Nixon Foundation |access-date=8 January 2024 |date=8 June 2014 |archive-date=January 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240108232101/https://www.nixonfoundation.org/2014/06/president-nixon-president-thieu-meet-midway-island-june-8-1969/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Km6bi.jpg|alt=QSL card from KM6BI|thumb|QSL card from KM6BI]]
[[File:NAS Midway Terminal.jpg|thumb|NAS Midway Terminal 1970]]

==== Amateur radio ====
Because of its particularly remote location and political status as a U. S. Navy base not part of the State of Hawaii, Midway was a separate country for amateur radio purposes. During this era, there were two main amateur radio stations: KM6BI on Sand Island and KM6CE on Eastern Island. Many other amateurs operated under callsigns from their quarters. They all provided a vital link to home via messages and phone patches.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Amateur Radio Operations to Begin Again on Midway Atoll |url=https://www.arrl.org/news/amateur-radio-operations-to-begin-again-on-midway-atoll |access-date=2025-03-29 |website=www.arrl.org |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-12-17 |title=Midway Island Ham Radio QSL Cards – Midway Island |url=https://www.midwayisland.com/midway-blog/midway-island-ham-radio-qsl-cards/ |access-date=2025-03-29 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-01-17 |title=Chronology |url=https://www.midway-island.com/chronology-of-events/ |access-date=2025-03-29 |website=Midway Island |language=en}}</ref>

In 2009, the [[United States Fish and Wildlife Service|U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service]] (USFWS) permitted amateur radio operations on Midway Atoll for the first time since 2002. This initiative aimed to encourage visitors to experience Midway's wildlife, history, and culture, with amateur radio being a significant aspect of this experience.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Hams to Activate Midway Atoll as K4M in October 2009 |url=https://www.arrl.org/news/hams-to-activate-midway-atoll-as-k4m-in-october-2009 |access-date=2025-03-29 |website=www.arrl.org |language=en}}</ref> The operation, designated as K4M, involved a team of 19 operators who activated the atoll for a 10-day period, operating on multiple frequencies and bands to connect with amateur radio enthusiasts worldwide.<ref name=":1" />

==== Missile Impact Location System ====
From 1958 through 1960, the United States installed the [[Missile Impact Location System]] (MILS) in the Navy-managed Pacific Missile Range, later the Air Force-managed [[Western Range (USSF)|Western Range]], to localize the splashdowns of test missile nose cones. MILS was developed and installed by the same entities that had completed the first phase of the Atlantic and U.S. West Coast SOSUS systems. A MILS installation, consisting of both a target array for precision location and a broad ocean area system for good positions outside the target area, was installed at Midway as part of the system supporting [[Intercontinental Ballistic Missile]] (ICBM) tests. Other Pacific MILS shore terminals were at the [[Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay]] supporting Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM) tests with impact areas northeast of Hawaii and the other ICBM test support systems at [[Wake Island]] and [[Eniwetok]].<ref name=ICAA>{{cite web |title=Integrated Undersea Surveillance System (IUSS) History 1950 - 2010 |publisher=IUSS/CAESAR Alumni Association |url=http://www.iusscaa.org/history.htm |access-date=11 February 2020 |archive-date=February 25, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200225083609/http://www.iusscaa.org/history.htm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Subcommittee on Military Construction (March–April) |date=April 29, 1959 |title=Military Construction Appropriations for 1960: Hearings |pages=169–170 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e-JLAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA169 |access-date=16 September 2020 |archive-date=October 1, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201001002732/https://books.google.com/books?id=e-JLAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA169 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Subcommittee on Military Construction (May) |date=May 20, 1959 |title=Military Construction Appropriations for 1960: Hearings |pages=818, 824 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HBVEAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA818 |access-date=16 September 2020 |archive-date=October 1, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201001041550/https://books.google.com/books?id=HBVEAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA818 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Eastern Island ====
[[Nomoi Islands|Eastern Island]], part of Midway Atoll, played a significant role during the [[Cold War]] as a site for U.S. naval intelligence operations. From July 1, 1954, to February 1971, it hosted the Naval Security Group Activity (NSGA), Midway Island, which was responsible for operating the AN/GRD-6 High-Frequency Direction Finding (HFDF) system. This system was integral to both the Eastern and Western Pacific HFDF networks, providing critical capabilities in tracking and monitoring high-frequency radio communications.

The AN/GRD-6 HFDF system was designed to automatically provide [[azimuth]] indications within the frequency range of 2 to 32&nbsp;MHz. It featured two antenna arrays: a low-frequency array covering 2 to 8&nbsp;MHz and a high-frequency array covering 8 to 32&nbsp;MHz. Each array consisted of multiple [[Monopole antenna|monopole]] antennas arranged in a circular pattern, with a sense antenna positioned at the center.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=AN/GRD-6 DF Set |url=https://jproc.ca/rrp/grd_6.html |access-date=2025-03-29 |website=jproc.ca}}</ref> Beneath each array, a circular copper wire mesh ground mat was buried to ensure consistent and reliable direction-finding performance, independent of local ground conductivity.<ref>{{Cite web |title=AN/GRD-6 HF Direction Finding System (HFDF) |url=https://navy-radio.com/grd6.htm |access-date=2025-03-29 |website=navy-radio.com}}</ref><ref name=":2" /> The system included [[Superheterodyne receiver|superheterodyne]] receivers and cathode ray tube indicators to display the direction of incoming signals.<ref name=":2" />

The strategic location of Eastern Island allowed the NSGA to monitor vast expanses of the [[Pacific Ocean]], contributing to the [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy's]] efforts in signals intelligence and maritime surveillance during a period marked by heightened geopolitical tensions. The data collected through the AN/GRD-6 system supported various military operations and enhanced the United States' situational awareness in the region.

[[File:NSGA Midway Sign.jpg|thumb|NSGA sign 1970.]]

[[File:NSGA, Eastern Island 1970.jpg|alt=|thumb|NSGA Eastern Island 1970]]

==== Naval Facility Midway ====
[[File:Watch floor.gif|250px|thumb|right|Lofargram writers on NAVFAC watch floor.]]
During the [[Cold War]], the U.S. established a shore terminal, in which output of the array at sea was processed and displayed utilizing the [[Low-Frequency Analyzer and Recorder (LOFAR)]], of the [[SOSUS|Sound Surveillance System]] (SOSUS), Naval Facility (NAVFAC) Midway Island, to track [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] submarines. The facility became operational in 1968 and was commissioned on January{{nbsp}}13, 1969. It remained secret until its decommissioning on September{{nbsp}}30, 1983, after data from its arrays had been remoted first to Naval Facility Barbers Point, Hawaii, in 1981 and then directly to the Naval Ocean Processing Facility (NOPF) Ford Island, Hawaii.<ref name=ICAA/><ref>{{cite web |last=Commander Undersea Surveillance |title=Naval Facility Midway Island January 1969 - September 1983 |publisher=U.S. Navy |url=https://www.public.navy.mil/subfor/cus/Pages/NAVFAC_Midway_Island.aspx |access-date=19 February 2020 |archive-date=February 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200219214952/https://www.public.navy.mil/subfor/cus/Pages/NAVFAC_Midway_Island.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Lockheed EC-121 Warning Star|U.S. Navy WV-2]]