Southern California's involvement in aviation can be traced back to the turn of the 20th century, but as the young industry began to grow, aviation companies were drawn to the area for many of the same reasons as the film industry once was. Southern California provided a moderate climate that allowed year-round production and testing of new ideas. During the second World War, government contracts to produce airplanes helped the burgeoning industry become a major contributor to the growth of Los Angeles. The end of WWII had quickly transitioned into a Cold War with former ally the Soviet Union, in which each competed to prove their dominance as a "Super Power." The Cold War produced both an arms race and the infamous space race, as each nation attempted to develop bigger and better rockets to serve both. Although atomic testing would take place in the deserts of Las Vegas and Nevada, the aviation industry in California would be the ideal site to develop rockets, guidance systems, and defense systems, transforming the aviation industry into the aerospace-defense industry. Surrounded by the world's top companies, who were once again being flooded with government contracts, the area in and around Culver City became the site of many developments in Cold War history.
Allies to Enemies
U.S.-Soviet relations were already strained before the onset of WWII. The Soviets had taken Russia out of the first World War, and its anti-capitalist ideology was an obstacle to improving relations. It seemed unlikely that this relationship would get any better, particularly after Joseph Stalin signed a non-aggression pact with Nazi Germany in 1939. With Soviet activity in Finland and Poland, the U.S. eventually issued an embargo against the USSR. However, an unlikely alliance soon emerged after Nazi Germany launched an invasion on the Soviet Union in June of 1941. Although the war had begun in 1939, the U.S. entered the war shortly after the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941, and began coordinating directly with the Soviet Union and its other allies.
Potsdam Conference. Truman Library.
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Germany eventually surrendered on May 7th, 1945, but the war in the Pacific continued. At the Potsdam Conference in Berlin, President Harry S. Truman met with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet Secretary General Joseph Stalin to discuss the post-war division of Germany and the continuing war against Japan. Truman casually hinted to Stalin that the U.S. had developed "a new weapon of unusual destructive force" that would help end the war. Truman believed that this would encourage Soviet support in the Pacific and cooperativeness in the conference. Instead, Stalin increasingly focused on the development of a Soviet bomb. The Manhattan Project, which was a coordinated government effort to develop the atomic bomb, was originally started in order to develop the bomb before the Germans were able to do so. However, the success of the Trinity test in Alamogordo, New Mexico was not completed until July 16, 1945, over a month after the German surrender. Before the Soviets even entered the war in the Pacific, Truman had given the order to bomb Hiroshima on August 6th, 1945, just days after the conclusion of the conference. Following the second bombing on Nagasaki, the Japanese issued their unconditional surrender on September 2nd, 1945.
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From a nonchalant comment between two allies, the conclusion of WWII had spurred a competition between the two nations. Eager not to be left to the will of the United States, the USSR soon developed their own atomic bomb, which was detonated on August 29, 1949. The launching of Sputnik, the world's first satellite put into orbit in 1957, and concerns over Soviet advances in rocketry in light of the development of the atomic bomb, meant that the USSR had a more efficient delivery system of massively destructive weapons. In "The Kitchen Debate," a discussion between Vice-President Richard M. Nixon and Soviet Secretary General Nikita Khrushchev, Nixon stated the implications of the U.S. being more advanced in the production of television and home appliances while the Soviet Union was more advanced at developing rockets. It was an attempt to find common ground in terms of technological achievement that Khrushchev easily dismissed. This contest between nations was instrumental in starting of a national space program under President Dwight D, Eisenhower, as well as a greater investment in national defense.
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Cold War tensions increased after Khrushchev addressed Western ambassadors at the Moscow Polish embassy on November 18th, 1956. There he announced, "History is on our side. We will bury you!" The statement was taken as a nuclear threat, and the increasingly aggressive stance taken against the West was a major motivator in funding the development of missile technology to match the Soviet Union. On April 12th, 1961, it was clear that the U.S. was lagging behind in rocket development when Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin successfully orbited the Earth, becoming the first man in space. This development prompted then President John F. Kennedy during a Special Joint Session of Congress on May 25th, 1961 to commit to the massive development of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and to put a man on the moon.. Kennedy's speech directly connected the appropriations for the space program as being directly connected to U.S. leadership against "tyranny," which he stated, "in many ways may hold the key to our future on earth."
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The space race that resulted from Kennedy's commitment eventually led to the U.S. landing a man on the moon, which became a symbolic victory of the nation's leadership in the development of space technology, and was inextricably tied to the further development of Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs) for defense purposes. Taking the lead in space resulted in the creation and development of nuclear weapons as well. As the two nations approached Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD), warfare itself took on new challenges. In order to avoid direct conflict, many wars and political coups were fought under the mission of stopping the "spread of Communism." Events such as the Korean War, the Cuban Missile Crisis and Bay of Pigs, the war in Vietnam, and the conflict being played out in the Western and Eastern division of Berlin, were all part of political maneuvering that kept each nation from battling one another directly, and possibly forcing one side or the other to use their increasing nuclear arsenal. With each event, new investment was made in the production of military resources and technology, as well as surveillance technology that would aid the growing use of espionage. The Cold War continued for several decades, with continuously changing levels of fear and relaxation. In the 1980's, President Ronald Reagan created one of the largest build-ups of nuclear weapons, and took a hard stance against the Soviets. It would not be until the late 1980's that political tensions would subside with the fall of the Berlin wall, and the eventual dissolution of the USSR on December 25, 1991.
The end of the Cold War, which had led to the impressive growth of the Southern California economy as the home of the majority of companies in the aerospace-defense industry following WWII, resulted in federal cuts in defense spending. No longer receiving government contracts, the Southern California economy fell into a recession. Companies were no longer able to employ such a substantial number of workers and began massive lay-offs that further decimated families, forcing many skilled workers from the industry to leave California to find work in other parts of the country. The companies themselves would also suffer financially, leading to a series of mergers and acquisitions that left only a few well-recognized names with the assets and facilities of aeronautic production. It would be several years before the Californian economy would regain stability in the birth of the technology industry and Silicon Valley, which re-purposed many technological advancements coming out of private companies and universities that were funded by Cold War defense and aerospace appropriations.
The end of the Cold War, which had led to the impressive growth of the Southern California economy as the home of the majority of companies in the aerospace-defense industry following WWII, resulted in federal cuts in defense spending. No longer receiving government contracts, the Southern California economy fell into a recession. Companies were no longer able to employ such a substantial number of workers and began massive lay-offs that further decimated families, forcing many skilled workers from the industry to leave California to find work in other parts of the country. The companies themselves would also suffer financially, leading to a series of mergers and acquisitions that left only a few well-recognized names with the assets and facilities of aeronautic production. It would be several years before the Californian economy would regain stability in the birth of the technology industry and Silicon Valley, which re-purposed many technological advancements coming out of private companies and universities that were funded by Cold War defense and aerospace appropriations.
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"". The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.
"". National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA History Office.
"". The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.
"". National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA History Office.