#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER One of HMG's most vital Cold War secrets was maintaining the security of its highly classified (TOP SECRET - FILCH) underground Central Government War HQ, codename: CHANTICLEER. On 01 October 1975, CHANTICLEER suffered a significant security breach.

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER On 16 September 1975, the PSA asked permission from the Superintendent RN Stores Depot, Copenacre (responsible for the highly classified underground Central Government War HQ - CHANTICLEER) for the RAF to conduct an aerial photo survey of MOD Corsham.

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER Permission was granted on 29 September & withdrawn on 07 October when it was discovered that a private firm had conducted the aerial photo survey instead of the RAF. It was too late! J A Storey & Partners had flown the survey on 01 October.

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER When the Cabinet Office learned of this massive security breach they siezed the photographic prints & negatives and arranged for them to be interpreted by the Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre (JARIC) at Brampton.

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER The JARIC photo interpreters were not informed of the location or purpose of the establishments present in the photographs. Although hurried, their interpretations pointed unerringly towards the significance of Spring Quarry - home to CHANTICLEER.

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER The Cabinet Office found that the the Superintendent of Copenacre (who was CHANTICLEER indoctrinated) for giving permission for the photo overflight, was at best unwise & recommended that his part in the affair merited 'closer attention' by the MOD.

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER In order to prevent raising further the curiosity of workers at J A Storey & Partners and to prevent a large financial cost it was decided to permit the firm's survey to continue. All photos and negatives would then be surrendered to the MOD.

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER The personal feeling of at least one part of the Cabinet Office was that CHANTICLEER's existence, if not its significance, was already known to the Russians. This was not necessarily a bad thing.

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER Of all those involved in the security breach, only the Cabinet Office knew the truth - that since May 1968, CHANTICLEER, was only a decoy site for the PYTHON concept. This reaction to a 'security breach' had to appear real to maintain the deception.

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre (JARIC) interpretation of 1975 aerial photographic survey of the Central Government War Headquarters (CGHWHQ) - CHANTICLEER.. 1/8

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre (JARIC) interpretation of 1975 aerial photographic survey of the Central Government War Headquarters (CGHWHQ) - CHANTICLEER.. 2/8

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre (JARIC) interpretation of 1975 aerial photographic survey of the Central Government War Headquarters (CGHWHQ) - CHANTICLEER.. 3/8

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre (JARIC) interpretation of 1975 aerial photographic survey of the Central Government War Headquarters (CGHWHQ) - CHANTICLEER.. 4/8

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre (JARIC) interpretation of 1975 aerial photographic survey of the Central Government War Headquarters (CGHWHQ) - CHANTICLEER.. 5/8

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre (JARIC) interpretation of 1975 aerial photographic survey of the Central Government War Headquarters (CGHWHQ) - CHANTICLEER.. 6/8

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre (JARIC) interpretation of 1975 aerial photographic survey of the Central Government War Headquarters (CGHWHQ) - CHANTICLEER.. 7/8

#ColdWarHistory #CHANTICLEER Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre (JARIC) interpretation of 1975 aerial photographic survey of the Central Government War Headquarters (CGHWHQ) - CHANTICLEER.. 8/8