An Evaluation of Entomological Warfare as a Potential Danger to the United States and European NATO Nations by William H. Rose (U.S. Army, Dugway Proving Ground, March 1981) is another historically important document found in the late Russ Kick’s files.
The report, according to Rose, is to assess “the current potential threat and probability of use various entomological warfare (EW) agents against the US and European NATO nations by a foreign power or dissident organization. It also makes recommendations to combat or negate this potential danger.” This partial release includes correspondence from 1997 between a previous requestor and the Army on the declassification of
…agent-vector combinations [sic, that] were considered during the 1950’s. Along with information of entomological field test BIG ITCH, which was conducted during 1954. This involved test of the E-14 munition, which was intended to disseminate fleas.
In searching the Web for the complete Evaluation study – which I couldn’t locate and presume remains classified – I ran across another partially released version with an accompanying detailed commentary written by FOWLChicago.
Although the two redacted documents don’t comprise Rose’s entire sixty or so page report, taken together, they are critical to revealing the U.S. defense interest in entomological warfare, which include still classified details on field studies (e.g., BELLWETHER, MAGIC SWORD, BIG BUZZ, Operation MAY DAY), and the groupthink underlying “costs per death” if entomological attacks occurred in U.S. cities or on troops.
secrecy {fragments} 