High-tech sensors were used for security during 1980 Lake Placid Olympics

ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, MD — As athletes from around the world gather in Paris for the Olympic Games, we are looking back in history to see how the U.S. Army Communications- Electronics Command’s predecessor organization, the Communications and Electronics Materiel Readiness Command, played a role in ensuring security during the 1980 Winter Games, held from February 13-24, in Lake Placid, New York.

The 1980 Lake Placid Games took place during the Cold War, which increased the need for heightened security measures. Just before the 1980 games, in December 1979, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, which resulted in a call for an international boycott of the 1980 Summer Games in Moscow by U.S. President Jimmy Carter.

The terrorist attacks at the 1972 Munich Summer Games were also fresh in the minds of the international community, adding to the already tense environment surrounding the games in Lake Placid. Palestinian terrorists broke into the Olympic Village, killing two members of the Israeli team and taking nine hostages. All the Israeli hostages were killed, as were five of the terrorists and one policeman.

In an overall effort to keep the crowds safe during this Lake Placid Games, employees from Fort Monmouth, New Jersey, worked with the New York State Police and the FBI to install a sensor system called Remotely Monitored Battlefield Sensor System, or REMBASS, around the perimeter of the Lake Placid 1980 Winter Olympics.

REMBASS, which was in its early stages, was a high-tech intelligence system developed to provide military commanders with information about hostile activity. These unattended ground sensors could detect movement of potential targets, including people and vehicles. According to a report submitted to Congress in 1981, REMBASS performed reliably and effectively under heavy military traffic, high speeds, and severe weather.

REMBASS proved to be an asset in non-military environments to prevent unauthorized intrusions.

“Earlier versions [of REMBASS] were used during the 1980 Winter Olympics to guard the competitors and functioned successfully even under eight feet of snow,” stated a report published in April 1998 by Forecast International, a company that provides market research for many defense projects.

The report also stated that REMBASS pre-production units were also successfully used during the U.S. invasion of Grenada in 1983, part of the Cold War. In addition to the U.S. military, the U.S. Border Patrol deployed REMBASS units along stretches of the U.S.-Mexico border.

Production for REMBASS ended in 1988 due to technological advancements in battlefield surveillance.

Currently, more than 10,500 athletes from around the world are competing during the 2024 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, France. A total of five Soldiers from the U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program have been selected to Team USA. Learn more by visiting https://www.armywcap.com/olympians.