[34] In the course of my introductory meetings with the heads of the various Headquarters offices, it became apparent to me that all of these officials did not share Mr. Webb's views as to the need for an Office of Defense Affairs and its proper role. In the Office of Manned Space Flight, for example, there was a strong tendency to be self-contained, self-sufficient, and independent of support from the functional offices in the Headquarters organization. OMSF appeared to prefer to conduct its DOD interface without guidance or monitoring from Defense Affairs. Certain of the functional offices of Headquarters appeared to feel that their relationships with the Defense Department were cognizance of my Office. Some key officials, in our view, were overzealous in stressing the "peaceful image" and, although the Space Act clearly called for mutual support and the closest working relationships between the two Agencies, there was in some quarters a tendency to minimize NASA's association there was in some quarters a tendency to minimize NASA's association with national defense in order not to tarnish the image.

There was physically located in OMSF an extension of the Office of the Deputy Commander for Manned Space Flight, Air Force Systems Command, who was then Maj. Gen. O. J. Ritland, USAF, an able, cooperative officer. The office had been established on May 1, 1962, and was staffed by about nine senior officers. Liaison between OMSF and the Air Force was largely being carried on through this office, and OMSF was reluctant to recognize the Office of Defense Affairs as the NASA focal point for the NASA-DOD interface in manned space flight matters. Similarly, OMSF was inclined to by-pass the Manned Space Flight Panel (MSFP) of the AACB in matters of mutual interest to the two Agencies.

My early contacts with Air Force Systems Command, the field activity having responsibility for the conduct of most of the DOD space programs, clearly indicated that the Commander, AFSC, and his staff preferred to do business with NASA Headquarters through the AFSC extension office under Ritland in OMSF rather than through the new Office of Defense Affairs. In fact, General Schriever suggested, in a letter to Dr. Seamans dated May 3, 1963, that his extension office in OMSF be expanded to effect liaison with all offices of NASA Headquarters. Seamans' reply of July 8, 1963, expressed our view that Ritland's office had been an effective and highly beneficial coordination and exchange mechanism which should be continued without dilution of its efforts in the manned space flight area, and that the need for a closer working relationship between the Headquarters staffs of NASA and AFSC could best be met through a fuller utilization of the Office of Defense Affairs to act for NASA in accomplishing the desirable coordination. Eventually, on the recommendation of Dr. George Mueller, Associate Administrator for Manned Space Flight, and with the concurrence of Gen. James Ferguson, who had relieved General Schriever, the AFSC liaison office located in OMSF was phased out and finally abolished on September 30, 1967.

[35] If we were to succeed in pulling together NASA's relationships with the DOD in the manner desired by Webb, Dryden, and Seamans, it would be necessary to tread softly and proceed with caution. Rosen, Green, and I decided that during this period of establishment we should be guided in our actions by two basic precepts:

a. We would not attempt to have all communications and interactions with the Defense Department channeled through our Office. In lieu of such an arrangement, we would seek to insure that proposed actions involving the DOD were in accord with NASA established policy as we understood it, that proposed NASA actions or positions were properly coordinated among all NASA offices having an interest, that interagency contracts were made at points and in the manner most conducive to ultimately favorable results, and that direct lines of communications were established and maintained under our monitorship; we would furnish information, advice, and guidance when needed; we would insist on being kept informed of all NASA-DOD actions which did not actually pass through our Office; and we would continuously monitor all inter-agency relationships and activities to see that they were conducted in a proper and expeditious manner. In attempting to do these things, we would avoid permitting the Office of Defense Affairs to become a bottleneck impeding the flow of information and the conduct of NASA-DOD business.

 

b. We would seek to bring about acceptance of our Office as a part of the Headquarters machinery by making ourselves as helpful as possible to all the other offices and the field centers in discharging their responsibilities. We felt that if we could demonstrate to key officials that bringing us into the loop served to further their objectives and expedite actions with the DOD, rather than to obstruct and delay, we would then be able to accomplish the purposes of NASA top management in creating the Office. Similarly, we would need to convince those offices in DOD who had business with NASA that by calling Defense Affairs first the matter at hand would be steered into the proper channel and the desired end result expedited.

 

These guiding principles proved to be successful; so much so, in they continued to be the basis of our operating philosophy the five years of my tenure. Other offices soon began to call help when they encountered difficulties in their relations with the Defense Establishment or were uncertain as how best to proceed. As time went on, a major portion of our effort continued to be devoted to trouble shooting for others and to heading off potential confrontations before they materialized.

[36] Our Office was too small to be compartmented. Even after the retired Army officer joined our staff and an active duty Air Force officer was detailed to the Office, we did not subdivide, although to some extent the individuals were assigned cognizance of certain functional areas. Rosen was next in succession to me, but did not function as a general deputy and did not interpose between me and the other professionals on routine matters. Much of his time was occupied with his duties as Vice Chairman of the Launch Vehicle Panel of the AACB, on ad had study groups, and with special assignments related to NASA's interface with the scientific community, both in and out of Government. Office administration was done by me through Green, because it worked best that way. Quite naturally, projects concerning the Army were generally assigned to Damon, Air Force matters were handled by the Air Force officer after one joined, and I usually handled projects involving the Navy. Green, as the NASA secretary of the AACB, was directly responsible for seeing that staff work on AACB agenda items was done. Other than this general division of cognizance, projects were usually assigned on the basis of the distribution of the workload at the time.

When the internal procedures involving Defense Affairs and the machinery of on-going NASA-DOD coordination and cross-support were better in hand, my Office assumed a more active role in initiating policy recommendations in our area of cognizance and in becoming involved in matters of agency-wide import, as Mr. Webb encouraged all elements of the Headquarters to do.

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