Strategic Air Command, 1958–2005 Francis E. Warren Air Force Base

1 strategic air command, 1958–2005

1.1 706th/389th strategic missile wing atlas d , e missiles, 1958–1965
1.2 90th missile wing minuteman i, 1963–1974
1.3 lgm-118 peacekeeper missiles, 1982–2005

strategic air command, 1958–2005

the 389th air base group established on 1 february 1958 take control of former atc facilities part of transfer strategic air command (sac). provisional 4320th strategic missile wing established date responsibility 24 atlas missile sites under sac. although not first designated missile wing, warren became first operational icbm base in air force.

706th/389th strategic missile wing atlas d , e missiles, 1958–1965

sm-65e atlas launch site



706th smw insignia



389th smw insignia

the project design above-ground sm-65d atlas icbm launch , control facilities @ site completed mid-may 1958 , construction finished in november 1959. design revisions delayed project several months. construction began @ location 23 miles (37 km) northwest of cheyenne in late 1958 facilities of activated 706th strategic missile wing, control icbms. on 15 september 1959, first atlas d missile deploy away vandenberg afb, california, went 564th strategic missile squadron stationed @ warren complex. month later, warren afb became recipient of first air-transported atlas missile. in presence of general power, commander in chief of sac, first atlas d complex turned on 564th sms , declared operational on 9 august 1960.

as work proceeded @ warren complex, army corps of engineers contracted warren ii 3 sites 3 atlas-d launchers @ each in february 1959. warren ii site ready in summer of 1960. 565th strategic missile squadron, activated on 1 december 1959, operated 9 launchers.

the warren iii site, designed 9 sm-65e atlas missiles scattered on 60-square-mile (160 km) area @ single coffin launch sites. term coffin used because missile laid on side underground coffin roof @ ground level. configuration offered limited protection launcher. on 1 october 1960, 549th strategic missile squadron became last atlas-e sms activated. 549th sms re-designated 566th sms on 1 july 1961. same date parent 706th strategic missile wing stood down. command responsibilities @ warren afb assumed activated 389th strategic missile wing.

in may 1964, 565th , 565th sms atlas-d missiles being phased out, 389th strategic missile wing received sac s last operational readiness inspection system. in september 1964, sac inactivated 564th sms. during march 1965, 566th sms atlas-e s deactivated, completing phaseout of atlas missile @ warren.

90th missile wing minuteman i, 1963–1974

90th missile wing emblem

the departure of atlas squadrons did not mark end of f.e. warren s role in icbm program. on 15 october 1962, morrison-knudsen , associates won contract construct 200 lgm-30a minuteman missile silos on 8,300-square-mile (21,000 km) area of wyoming, nebraska, , colorado, located north , east of base. on 1 july 1963, air force activated 90th strategic missile wing. on next year, 4 component strategic missile squadrons activated 400th sms became last minuteman b unit stand on 1 july 1964. in november 1972, sac initiated minuteman integrated improvement program . program entailed silo hardening , upgrading command data buffers in launcher control facilities, allowed quicker missile re-targeting , new version of minuteman missiles. after conversion lgm-30g minuteman iii, last minuteman ib model went off alert status in september 1974.

lgm-118 peacekeeper missiles, 1982–2005

minuteman iii s occupied silos 1974–1986. on 22 november 1982, president ronald reagan stated decision in statement congress, deploy mx missile dubbed peacekeeper (later designated lgm-118 peacekeeper) superhardened silos located @ warren afb. capable of carrying 10 independently targeted nuclear warheads, peacekeeper intended strengthen ground-based strategic policy of u.s. initial plan deploy 100 peacekeepers in silos of 400th , 319th strategic missile squadrons. in july 1984, construction began peacekeeper support facilities @ warren afb. 1986 through 1988, 50 peacekeepers backfitted silos occupied minuteman iii s 1974–1986 of 400th strategic missile squadron. during time contamination documented propose base listed superfund site on 7/14/1989.

in 2002, president george w. bush set plan in motion reduce country s missile forces 6,000 between 1,700 , 2,200. russian president vladimir putin agreed follow similar plan, signing strategic offensive reductions treaty. part of reduction, peacekeeper missiles taken off alert , inactivated beginning in 2002 until 16 september 2005. squadrons inactivated on 19 september 2005.