The History of Crows

In this episode of History of Crows, we look back at the founding of the AOC to celebrate embarking on its 60th year. The necessity of EW for mission success and saving lives in 21st-century warfare is primarily due to a small cadre of EW operators from WWII and the Korean War. They wanted to form a group to foster and preserve the art of electronic warfare and commemorate fittingly fellow Crows' memory. Who were these early pioneers in EW who established the AOC? Why was forming an association so crucial to advocating for EW? And, of course, why did they call themselves the "Old Crows?"

To help with this journey and answer these questions, narrator Ken Miller is joined by Lifetime Achievement Awardee, AOC Silver Medal Winner, Technology Hall of Fame Inductee, and long-time Old Crow, Paul Westcott. To learn more about today's topics or to stay updated on EMSO and EW developments, visit crows.org.

In celebration of women’s history month, this episode of History of Crows, honors the contributions of three women whose discoveries, inventions, and insights made a lasting impact on electromagnetic spectrum operations and, in some cases, helped turn the tides of war: Florence Violet McKenzie, Joan Curran, and Hedy LaMarr. 

To help us tell these stories, we turn to Author David Duffy and Author Kimberly Moravec. The guest narrator is Ms. Shelley Frost, the first woman Executive Director of the Association of Old Crows. While we celebrate these and other women's achievements during Women’s History Month, we must also acknowledge that women in Electronic Warfare have faced significant barriers in their careers, even barriers to simply be considered equal members of society. This episode is dedicated to all women of Electronic Warfare – past, present, and future.

In celebration of women’s history month, this episode of History of Crows, honors the contributions of three women whose discoveries, inventions, and insights made a lasting impact on electromagnetic spectrum operations and, in some cases, helped turn the tides of war: Florence Violet McKenzie, Joan Curran, and Hedy LaMarr. 

To help us tell these stories, we turn to Author David Duffy and Author Kimberly Moravec. The guest narrator is Ms. Shelley Frost, the first woman Executive Director of the Association of Old Crows. While we celebrate these and other women's achievements during Women’s History Month, we must also acknowledge that women in Electronic Warfare have faced significant barriers in their careers, even barriers to simply be considered equal members of society. This episode is dedicated to all women of Electronic Warfare – past, present, and future.

The History of Crows’ is back with more stories about the world of electromagnetic spectrum operations (EMSO). The roots of electronic warfare lie in radar countermeasures–specifically, radar countermeasures in World War Two. We tend to hear more about the aerial radar countermeasure operations in the European campaign. But these operations were used elsewhere, especially in the Pacific theater. In today’s episode, we tell how Japanese radar advancement and the Radio Countermeasure impacted war in the Pacific during WWII. 

To help us share these stories, we turn to Mr. Trent Telenko. He is the Section 22 Special Interest Group list admin and social media outreach. Mr. Telenko’s career and expertise includes 33 years as a DCMA Quality auditor, Team lead & staff specialist for aircraft electronics, simulators, missile launchers and drones. His writings have covered electronic warfare and defense intelligence in the Pacific, including Section 22 Special Interest Group aka ‘SIG’, which was responsible for mapping the Australian, New Zealand and American archives for Section 22 materials.

To learn more about the AOC and this podcast, visit www.crows.org/podcast

In this episode, we continue our look into the world of Electromagnetic Spectrum Operations (EMSO) through the first large-scale use of radar and Electromagnetic Warfare (EW) in WWII. The episode shares how the began collecting radio transmissions and turning these signals into tactical intelligence. And that’s where we begin today, at Bletchley Park, the home of Britain’s top-secret code breakers. The episode also covers the important role that EW played in the Battle of Hamburg and Berlin and how it paved the way for Allied Forces on D-Day.

To help us understand these historical battles we turn to Mr. John Stubbington. He graduated from the Royal Air Force (RAF) Technical College in 1961 before his career in EW and Defense Intelligence. He was the Engineer Flight Commander with No.51 Squadron, operating Comet, and Canberra aircraft. He then worked with RAF Bomber Command during the days of the V-Force before becoming responsible for ECM Development with the Bomber Command Development Unit. We also return to historian Dr. Phil Judkins from Leeds University and hear from the National Cryptologic Museum in the U.S.

Thank you to our episode sponsor, BAE Systems, for sponsoring this episode.

Ms. Wilcox's participation in this podcast is for informational purposes only and does not imply an endorsement of any product, service, or enterprise

In today’s story, radar has been developed and we venture back to WWII to see the first large-scale use of Electromagnetic Warfare (EW). Electromagnetic spectrum operations (EMSO) has played an important role in military operations since the dawn of the electronics age. Radar historian, Dr. Phil Judkins, University of Leeds, U.K. shares with us the untold stories of EW and EMSO in WWII, starting with the Battle of Britainーthe first time that a battle between two nations was fought entirely in the air. Dr. Judkins then walks us through The Beam Wars and the increasingly accurate use of radio air navigation systems that helped the British defeat the German air power. Finally, we cover the Blitz, a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, and show how the advanced radar tactics employed by the British helped to win the Battle and defeat the German’s attacks. 

To learn more about today’s topics or to stay updated on EMSO and EW developments, visit our website.

Thank you to our episode sponsor BAE Systems.

The story of electromagnetic spectrum operations (EMSO) continues with the birth of radar. With wireless communications paving the way, these technologies led to the early use of electromagnetic warfare from World War I through the US entering World War II, following the attack on Pearl Harbor. In this episode, Mr. Ray Chase from the Information Age Learning Center and Mr. Mike Simmons from the National Electronics Museum share the story about early radar development and electromagnetic warfare in the early 20th Century. Since the dawn of the Electronic Age and the years following World War I, new advances came from Marconi’s invention of wireless communications. Radio jamming, direction-finding stations and air-to-ground communications displayed major advantages for reconnaissance. But as we find out in today’s story, these advances would come to serve an even greater purpose in the Second World War.

To learn more about today’s topics or to stay updated on EMSO and EW developments, visit our website.

The AOC thanks BAE Systems for sponsoring this episode. 

*Trigger warning, sounds of war in episode

The story of electromagnetic spectrum operations (EMSO) continues with the discovery of wireless telegraphy and how it forever changed the global landscape. In this episode, we trace the life of Guglielmo Marconi through his dreams and determination as a young engineer who believed the experiments of Heinrich Hertz could change the world, to the shrewd businessman who ushered us into the Dawn of the Electronic Age. From experiments at home in Italy to helping nations communicate wirelessly across the Atlantic Ocean, Marconi helped the world become globally interconnected in a way that many thought impossible at the turn of the 20th Century.   

To help us learn about the unique life and accomplishments of Marconi, and the impact that wireless telegraphy had on the world of EMSO, we hear insights from Harry Klancer and Al Klace from the Information Age Learning Center, a non-profit organization located at the historic site of the American Marconi Belmar Wireless Station, which ultimately became the U.S. Army Camp Evans Signal Laboratory. 

To learn more about today’s topics or to stay updated on EMSO and EW developments, visit our website.

The AOC thanks BAE SYSTEMS for sponsoring this episode.

Electromagnetic energy is a fundamental part of our universe. Humans discovered ways to use this energy for many purposes. From radio to TV, smartphones to Wifi. But electromagnetic energy also influenced another major sector: military operations. Along came the Crows, people who learned electromagnetic energy, applied it to military combat operations, and forever impacted modern warfare. Today, we begin the story of how the greatest scientific minds came to understand this natural phenomenon, how it changed the way we think, live and communicate, and how now electromagnetic spectrum operations, or EMSO, have influenced every major military campaign over the past 100 years.

This episode takes you to the scientific roots of EMSO. We hear insights from Mr. Charles “Chuck” Quintero from the Johns Hopkins University of Applied Physics Laboratory, who discusses the evolution of natural philosophy from Sir Isaac Newton to James Clerk Maxwell to Heinrich Hertz. He tells the stories behind the great minds of scientists, physicists, and mathematicians and how they contributed to Maxwell’s theories on electromagnetism and the impact it later had on the world of EMSO.

To learn more about today’s topics or to stay updated on EMSO and EW developments, visit our homepage.

The AOC thanks BAE SYSTEMS for sponsoring this episode.

This podcast will take you on a journey throughout time and around the world to meet the inventors, the battles, and the technology that has not only shaped military operations - how we fight - but also how we live. The History of Crows will cover some of the most important discoveries, battles, and events that shaped what we know today as electromagnetic spectrum operations. Episodes that take you deeper into our history will be added periodically.