What did the declassified documents reveal?

This Declassified briefing presents a declassified National Security Agency record concerning the coordination of a reconnaissance mission. This cable, dated June twenty-eighth, nineteen-sixty-two, details operational instructions for intelligence gathering in the China coastal area during the Cold War. The document is sourced from documents2.theblackvault.com. This document was released to the public under the Freedom of Information Act. It was made available on October twenty-ninth, two-thousand-and-thirteen, via the A-A-R-O, or Assassination Records Review Board, declassification authority. The document is a TOP SECRET cable from the Director of the N-S-A. The message begins: "THIS MSG FOR G-R-C COORD ONLY." It states: "G-R-O one one seven ALERTED FOR twenty-nine / twenty-two hundred Zulu AND G-R-O one one eight ALERTED FOR twenty-nine / twenty-three hundred Zulu JUNE sixty-two." The cable continues: "NICKNAME AND MESSAGE SLUG Nestegg UNCLASS." It then instructs: "[four lines redacted under exemption B1] TO OPERATE G-R-O-one one seven BETWEEN twenty-nine / twenty-two hundred Zulu AND thirty / zero three zero Zulu AND G-R-O-one one eight BETWEEN twenty-nine / twenty-three hundred Zulu AND thirty / zero four four zero Zulu IN CHINA COAST AREA." The cable concludes: "PERSONNEL TO EXECUTE ANY CANNED MISSION WHICH MAY BE DICTATED BY LATEST W-X AT GO NO GO TIME. THIS MEANS THAT MISSION ROUTE IS NOT FINALLY DECIDED UNTIL APPROX FOUR HOURS BEFORE TAKEOFF. THEREFORE MISSION PLAN MSG DUE TWELVE HOURS BEFORE DEP MUST BE DELAYED TO GO NO GO TIME. END OF MESSAGE OPERATIONAL IMMEDIATE." The document bears several stamps, including "DECLASSIFIED N-S-A" and "RELEASED 2000." The Black Vault, which hosts this document, notes that this cable coordinates a reconnaissance mission over the Chinese coast. The "Nestegg" nickname likely refers to this specific operation, with flight crews instructed to adjust mission parameters based on real-time weather conditions just hours before takeoff. This is what the public record looks like at its most ordinary. Find this and other declassified documents at storyflo.com and the canonical U-R-L archive.org/download/us-china-intel-CI01490/CI01490djvu.txt.

Why was this case declassified?

This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. The originating source document is linked on this page so the citation chain is auditable.

This Declassified Briefing Presents A Declassified National Security Agency

◆ BLUF — The short version

This Declassified briefing presents a declassified National Security Agency record concerning the coordination of a reconnaissance mission. This cable, dated June twenty-eighth, nineteen-sixty-two, details operational instructions for intelligence gathering in the China coastal area during the Cold War. com. This document was released to the public under the Freedom of Information Act.

Date: SEP 13 · 2026
Release: Declassified · U.S. public record (FOIA)
Source document: View the primary source document

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What was This Declassified Briefing Presents A Declassified National Security Agency about?: This Declassified briefing presents a declassified National Security Agency record concerning the coordination of a reconnaissance mission. This cable, dated June twenty-eighth, nineteen-sixty-two, details operational instructions for intelligence gathering in the China coastal area during the Cold War. com. This document was released to the public under the Freedom of Information Act.
Why was this case declassified?: This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. Storyflo narrates it directly from the public release.

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