 The latest weapons, coupled with a fighting skill of the American soldier, stand ready on the alert all over the world to defend this country. You the American people against aggression. This is The Big Picture, an official television report to the nation from the United States Army. Now to show you part of The Big Picture, here is Sergeant Stuart Queen. There's a new look about going overseas today, summed up in the words Operation Gyroscope. Formerly, when a soldier went overseas, he had no idea of his assignment before shipping out and usually he joined his new unit as an individual replacement. Now into the picture comes Gyroscope. The Army's newly developed system for rotating entire combat units between home and overseas bases on a fixed schedule. Military leaders and servicemen of every rank, not to speak of their families, are watching the Gyroscope experiment with intense interest. Why the interest? The reasons will be clear when you hear and see the picture story of Operation Gyroscope. Captain James Bounds, reporter for The Big Picture, recently accompanied the first unit to move overseas since Gyroscope went into effect. Captain Bounds. Two airborne regimental combat teams were to be involved in the first Gyroscope move. One unit was in Japan, the other a long way off at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. And it was to Fort Campbell, home of the famous angels of the 11th Airborne Division, that I went to see how a unit prepares for a move overseas in the Gyroscope era. First off, what about a Gyroscope? While as any Navy man or dictionary will quickly tell you, it's an instrument often used to resist the rolling of a ship or airplane. You might say it helps maintain balance, stability. I began to understand why the code name Gyroscope had an officer's briefing session of the 508th Airborne Regimental Combat Team. Gentlemen, I have brought you together here this morning to discuss our move to Japan. You're all aware of the importance of Gyroscope to the Department of the Army. We will be the first unit to complete its portion of the first move in Gyroscope. There's another first. We will be the first unit, the 508th Airborne Infantry Regimental Combat Team, to travel by air over an ocean, complete tactical move. In a complete tactical move of nearly 4,000 officers and enlisted men across the country, then over the Pacific to Japan, is a job requiring coordination and planning of the highest order. Everything was spelled out on paper, from the standard operating procedure for packing office records to the assignment of billets upon arrival at the destination. I suppose that's one reason the operation looks so smooth, files into packing cases and cases systematically into trucks, a crisply executed sequence, like race to Gilliam, to Hodges. Some 1,000 dependents of the men of the 508 were due to move out too, heading for San Francisco's port of embarkation and the trip over, a sea voyage for them with the soldiers going by air. I saw many of boys' bicycle loaded aboard, but little girls weren't budging if they were separated from those little dolls. Not long afterwards, the railroad station at Fort Campbell was the scene of a lot of temporary goodbyes. Temporary because for the first time in Army history, men were able to put their families aboard a train heading for a west coast port and plan to meet their families upon arrival in Japan. I watched a veteran Army sergeant saying goodbye and made a mental note to ask him what he thought of gyroscope. I had a hunch it was different from the way he had gone overseas before. The final wave from the commanding officer and the other husbands and fathers at the station, the train pulled out for the start of a long, long trip, with the dependents on their way the last few days before the 508's departure raced by. The afternoon before moving out, I stood on a company street as the sound of a whistle pierced the air. The hours tomorrow morning you will move into the marshaling area. At 1500 hours this afternoon, I will be back to make an inspection of your backs, your clothing, your equipment, and your individual weapons. When I come back at 1500, I want you to have those things clean. And I mean clean. Sergeant Phillips, can I see you a moment? Yes, sir. Sergeant Phillips, this is Sergeant Wilson. Sergeant Phillips. You can go ahead and wrap it up. Sergeant Phillips, I couldn't help but overhear your discussion with the men. You mean you're going to actually take the boys out in the morning at 0500 hours? Yes, sir. This gyroscope is the best thing that ever happened in the Army. Why do you say that? Well, from the Army's viewpoint, it gives the unit the benefit of the men of its train. The general purpose behind the plan is to build up the units that are going to remain intact. You get your men, you train them, and you keep them. I've been in the Army a little over 12 years and I've trained many men. Just at the time you get them up to the point where they're a good fighting soldier who comes out in a blasted order and ships to another unit. Now, you're talking about the Army. What about the men themselves? I think for the men it's excellent. The man comes in the Army, the hardest thing he has to do is make friends. This way, if he gets in the unit, he makes his friends, he stays with them, and keeps his whole tour of duty right in the same outfit. Well, now you've covered the Army and the men. What about yourself personally, Sergeant? Well, I'm very proud of my outfit, sir, and I'm proud of the men that are in it. Besides that, I'm a married man. I get to take my wife with me in 13 days of the old system to take me six months. Well, good luck this time. Probably see you over there. Thank you very much. It's a pleasure. Morning of the departure, duffel bags were stacked at the head of the company's street. Then checked to make sure the contents were secure. And the sun had barely come up when the last contingent of the 508 was marching out of Fort Campbell. Within a short time, the advanced units of the 508 reached the marshaling area near the airport. Here they would stay until boarding the planes. Time moved slowly in those last few hours before a trip. Everything's ship-shaped. Just wait. Some may good use of the free time. Reading up on the country where they soon would be stationed. Fabulous island of Nippon. In Japan, meanwhile, a final taste of Japanese culture was being absorbed at the other half of Operation Gyroscope. This was a time for Sayonara, Japanese for goodbye. This was a time for the farewell speeches. Simple, sincere words between friend and friend, Japanese and American. Time for the fragrant aroma of such delicacies as shrimp tempura. Time for a few remarks by a representative of the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team. Remarks adding up to thanks, people of Japan. Then the table set in distinctively delicate style. Chow time, Japanese fashion. And it's never too late for another chopstick lesson. Yes, the last days in Japan were full of interesting activity. Some play, but mostly work. Gyroscope took plenty of planning on the 187th and 2, so that everything would go smoothly. Right up to the end, the 187th continued its rigorous training, guaranteed to make the troopers in their own spirited words, lean and mean. A training jump was scheduled shortly before the unit was to leave Japan. Everybody jumps, from the clerk to the rifleman, from the parachute rigger to the canineer. Their overseas tour, the 187th had jumped on training missions in various areas of Japan and Okinawa, always staying combat-ready in the paratrooper tradition. It did with the final jump program, with the departure preparations, which went rolling onward. The many trophies won by 187th units and men were carefully dismantled and packed, stenciling and, finally, loading. And at the post office, many Arakasan, as the Japanese call the paratrooper, mailed home souvenirs, bought in exotic places like Betu and Oyanahara, and now bound for more familiar towns. Back in the United States, and the other half of Operation Gyroscope, the 508th Airborne Regimental Combat Team was set to leave the marshaling area near the airport. The final word of instruction, and the 508th moves out to Campbell Air Force Base. This will be the first time an army unit of this size has been airlifted over either ocean on such a long trip. 43 giant C-124 Globemasters were waiting to airlift the troopers to Travis Air Force Base, California. Then on to Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, to Wake Island, and finally, to Shia Air Force Base, Japan. There were propellers in the lead plane roared into the skies, and regular intervals guided by the staccato instructions of the tower, the planes took off. What do you do when you spend over 52 hours in the air? Well, if you're anything like the man of the 508th, you'll eat and talk, and loudly too, I realized, it's supposed to be heard above the roar of the motors, or be strictly GI and shine your brass. Choose some gum, maybe, maybe fight the five o'clock shadow, or maybe ride a letter home. There's always a spare hour to snazz up those trooper boots, or maybe try a hopefully hot hand and bridge, or just peer out into the sky, watching those props hurt you westward through the air. Nightfall at a Shia airfield, 52 hours after takeoff, finds the first contingent off the plane headed by the 508th's commanding officer. Operation gyroscope is running smoothly. Throughout the night and on into the next day, as Shia control towers call in the huge globe masters, on finds the plane still landing, descending slowly over the graceful Japanese landscape. From the neatly pressed uniforms and the general appearance of the 508th, you'd never know they'd spent so many hours aboard a crowded plane. A formation, an all-present and accounted for, sir, and they're on their way again. The final destination is fairly close now. The 187th is almost set to go. Dependence furnishings are packed and loaded aboard trucks. The last meal at camp before pulling out. Most of the soldiers will fly home. Dependence will return by ship. Camp Chigamaga, one of the three home camps of the 187th, the big day toward which everything has been pointing, the turnover of command to the commanding officer of the just arrived 508th. By side, one honoring the other, the flags of the 187th and the 508th, two of America's finest fightingist outfits are brought onto the parade grounds. Doing dignitaries look on, the transfer of command is completed. Yes, the 508th has arrived, and one half of the gyroscope mission has been accomplished. Out of camp, Homeward Bound goes the other half of gyroscope, the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team. Japanese of all ages wish them farewell in Godspeed. Stepping proudly through a Japanese version of a Wall Street ticker tape parade, the 187th finally reaches a railroad station, where they will board the trains to the airport. They'll speech by the mayor, then bouquets of flowers, as testimonials of Japanese affection and goodwill. The Sayonara signs meaning goodbye are everywhere as the men board the trains. A Japanese swing band serenades, as a soldier named O'Neill, clearly a favorite, gets special attention. And the Homeward Bound special train chugs out of the station. Comes through, the Japanese people are sorry to see the boys go. Relaxing in the coaches, the men have a last look at the perennial face of Japan, as it moves past in a bewildering succession of small farms, and paddy fields and fishing villages. Meanwhile, into Yokohama Harbor, steam the ship bearing the dependence of the 508. You can be sure that the men of the outfit were preparing a tender welcome to Japan, where their wives and children who crowded the rails and portals, seek of a brass band echoed across the wharf. The welcoming party came aboard with flowers for the wife of the commanding officer. Representatives of the Japanese community were on hand to extend greetings to the families of the 508. With each man of the family, shepherding his brood, the wives and children of the 508 finally set foot on Japan, kept at a minimum, so that the new arrivals could be processed quickly and efficiently. Few of the wives were Japanese girls, returning to Japan, thanks to gyroscope. United States. Three years. Three years. Where did you meet your husband over here in Japan? In Japan. He was 11 years old, and that was 1946. And whereabouts in the country here did you meet him? What part? What do you mean then? Up north. Up north? I see. Yoshiko, how did you enjoy your trip over on the boat? Well, this time I have a lot of trouble because I've got one more. You've got two boys here. Yeah, I think it's a miserable trip. I really need the husband to help me this time. Well, I understand that your husband isn't here, but that you're going to meet him in Kanpo. You're leaving on the train today to meet your husband. Tell me, are your parents still living? No, I have only one sister. One sister. And where does she live? In Morioka, my hometown. I see. Are you going to get a chance to visit her as soon as you can? Well, my father died last night after I went to the United States, so I had to go to the cemetery and see my father. Well, how did you like life in the United States, Yoshiko? I think that any place you go, I think the same. The people are the same. And the people over there are very kind, real nice to me. And my mother-in-law and father-in-law are wonderful people. Well, are you glad to get back to Japan to visit some of your old friends again? Oh, yes, I'll be all right away. Tell me, Yoshiko, what do you think of this operation gyroscope, whereby you can go with your husband wherever he goes? Well, it surprised me. I don't know what to say. Still, I can't breathe, you know. You think it's a good deal? Yes, it's real nice. The ship didn't remain empty long. No sooner were the dependents of the 508th shore than the family men of the 187, with wives and children, went aboard for the trip home. For some of the children born in Japan, this would be the first time they would see their country. The army was anxious to get reactions to operation gyroscope. Sergeant, how long have you been with the 187? I've been with them approximately 18 months. All that time you spend here in this country? I have, with the exception of 93 days in Korea. What is your job with the regiment, Sergeant? I'm the first sergeant of support company. How did you like your tour of Japan? I liked it very much. Do you have anything to say about Japan? Well, I've enjoyed my visit very much over here. What do you people think of operation gyroscope, whereby, Sergeant, you can keep your family with you wherever you go? I think it's a very good idea. Keeping your family with you traveling together concurrently is a very good idea. I think it's going over big with the rest of the boys. Well, we're glad to hear that you think it's a good deal. Amid the salutes of harbor whistles, the gang plank was lifted. And music blared forth again as the gangway hatched clang shut. One last wave up a hose on deck, gloria of activity on the wharf, and slowly the ship pulled away from Japan. In 87th march toward the globe masters that had air ferryed the 508th to Japan. Within a short time they would be marching off the planes, onto the soil of their own country. Operation gyroscope had proven that the army, in conjunction with troop carrier aircraft, is capable of moving large units over vast distances in a matter of hours rather than weeks. From the standpoint of the men and their families, gyroscope has given their careers a stability army life never had before, with a resulting boost in morale and unit spirit. One every two hours the huge planes thundered into the air, brought the day and night 43 globe masters throbbing through the sky. The plane passed over the Japanese farmers in the fields, heading toward the Pacific and home. Operation gyroscope passed into history. From Fort Campbell, Kentucky to the islands of Japan is a long, long way. But for several thousand soldiers, maybe it didn't seem so long. Thanks to the speed of air travel and the planning of Operation Gyroscope. Thank you Captain Bounds for your report on the army's newly conceived rotation plan, gyroscope. Now this is Sergeant Stewart Queen inviting you to be with us again next week. For another look at your army in action on the big picture. The big picture is a weekly television report to the nation on the activities of the army at home and overseas. Produced by the Signal Corps pictorial center. Presented by the United States Army in cooperation with this station. You too can be an important part of the big picture. You can proudly serve with the best equipped, the best trained, the best fighting team in the world today, the United States Army.