JFK AF-1 Audio Tapes - Washington Post-Assassination (1963)

Synopsis:

It's been nearly a half-century since the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
New information from that day in Dallas has just been released -- audiotape of conversations between Air Force One and Washington.

For the first time, the complete audio record of the flight back from Dallas to Washington is available.

Original audiotape recording that includes taped conversations on President Kennedy's official airplane, "Air Force One," during its flight following his assassination on November 22, 1963. The conversations were between pilots and other individuals on the flight and various individuals in Washington, DC, on the flight back from Dallas, TX, to Andrews Air Force Base. It is two hours and 22 minutes long.

The Raab Collection recently discovered two ¼" open-reel audiotapes containing identical excerpts from the Air Force One flight on November 22, 1963, among the papers and other memorabilia of Army General Chester "Ted" Clifton, Jr. General Clifton served as senior military aide to President John F. Kennedy and had received the tapes from the White House Communications Agency (WHCA). The original audiotape recording is described as "Radio Traffic involving AF-1 in flight from Dallas, Texas, to Andrews AFB on November 22, 1963."

The conversations were captured by the WHCA, which routed all phone calls and radio traffic. The tape also includes communication between the WHCA and a second aircraft of the Presidential fleet, known as 86972 (by its tail number), which was en route to Tokyo at the time of the assassination with members of the President's cabinet.

The recording includes references to new code names and incidents. Among them are a private conversation by head of the Secret Service Jerry Behn about the disposition of the President's body; an expanded conversation about how to remove the body from the plane and where to take it; an urgent effort by an aide to Air Force Chief of Staff Curtis LeMay to reach General Clifton; and attempts to locate various Congressmen from Texas.

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