Spycraft - Melton [37]
One of Gottlieb’s first moves was to bring research and development closer to the techs directly supporting operations.4 Less obvious at the time was the significance of the creation of the Directorate of Research in 1962.5 With this decision, R&D supporting the Big Technology of aerospace and satellite programs became independent from the DDP. TSD remained in the DDP with the single mission of operational support, specifically technical support to stations, case officers, and agents.6
Gottlieb and Russell saw a future in which TSD technology would enable operations through new tradecraft devices and techniques. The Big Technology of satellites and photoreconnaissance had proven successful on a large scale in the relatively predictable environment of space. Now TSD had the opportunity to demonstrate how sophisticated, scaled-down technology could expand the scope of what was possible in the unpredictable environment of street operations.
This ambitious strategy first had to address some immediate and not altogether pleasant realities. Much of the equipment in TSD’s inventory was woefully outdated and the technical staff seemed imbalanced toward technicians at the expense of engineers. As late as 1960, most electronic gear available for field deployment was too big, too cumbersome, too unreliable, too complex, and too power hungry. In the decidedly blunt terminology of one scientist of the day, the equipment was “junk.”
What Russell and Gottlieb had was largely a “craft and special service boutique” for operations. TSD could provide excellent forged documents, quality clandestine printing, and well-made concealments. But that was insufficient to meet the DDP’s demands for conducting clandestine operations against the Soviet Union.
“TSD leadership had two mountains to climb. One was the technology, which was pretty bad,” said a TSD staffer from the era. “For instance, with secret writing, we were issuing systems that Caesar could have used during the Gallic Wars. We used systems that were developed during the First World War. We weren’t taking advantage of post-World War II chemistries; and the opposition, the Soviets, certainly had the capability to detect our existing systems. So, we had to get better technology. Second, we had to convince working level case officers that we had something to contribute. But it [the technology] wasn’t on our shelves, so we’d have to develop the new capabilities and the new equipment across the board.”
In chemistry, Gottlieb’s field, the few academically degreed chemists directing research were trained prior to World War II. Other TSD “chemists” and techs supporting secret writing in the field were former military medics with no professional training. To remedy this problem, Gottlieb and Russell began recruiting university graduates—scientists and engineers, rather than technicians—specifically for R&D. Their strategy was to exploit the current science from university and research centers and package it quickly into viable covert systems.
Russell broke ties with the Agency’s Office of Personnel, TSD’s traditional source of “new hires,” at the urging of his R&D chief, and began sending senior officers to universities to talk to engineers and recruit new graduates. A co-op program was started in which college sophomores and juniors were hired for a summer or school term and put to work in a lab. An instant success, the co-op program offered a view into the newest research at the universities and allowed TSD to assess a potential employee before making a long-term commitment.