KY - 8
The KY-8 was one the of the NESTOR family of crypto devices strictly for
vehicle mounting. They were bulky, quite heavy and mostly unreliable,
but in it's heyday, it was about the only portable SECVOX (secure voice)
system available to the military for use in the field. Numerous
quantities were issued to the various US forces -- Army, Air Force, Navy
and Marine personnel and hauled through many a battle.
Joe Martin, expands on this, "This piece of equipment played a key
role in the EC-47 missions in
Southeast Asia, of which I was a part for most of 1970-71. We (the
USAFSS Morse intercept operators) passed the target call sign, location,
and other relevant info to the ASA troops on the ground via KY-8 or, God
forbid, by "one time" pad if the secure voice failed. A KY-8 malfunction
was not cause for abort, but nobody looked forward to having to use the
pads. In 270+ missions, I recall having to do it only once.
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| This is the KYB-6/TSEC base unit, an assembly of
TSEC/KY-8. (Photo provided by Brooke Clarke/George Mace).
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