History Francis E. Warren Air Force Base

1 history

1.1 united states army

1.1.1 fort russell 1867–1927
1.1.2 fort warren, 1930–1945


1.2 united states air force

1.2.1 air training command, 1947–1958
1.2.2 strategic air command, 1958–2005

1.2.2.1 706th/389th strategic missile wing atlas d , e missiles, 1958–1965
1.2.2.2 90th missile wing minuteman i, 1963–1974
1.2.2.3 lgm-118 peacekeeper missiles, 1982–2005


1.2.3 twentieth air force, 1991–present


1.3 challenge of maintenance, upgrade
1.4 previous names
1.5 major commands assigned
1.6 base operating units
1.7 major units assigned
1.8 intercontinental ballistic missile facilities

history

the history of base dates railroad act of 1862, when president lincoln , congress set plans transcontinental railroad. included military installation on eastern slope of rocky mountains in wyoming territory, protect union pacific workers hostile indians . these pioneer origins, base evolved frontier infantry , cavalry post largest, modern strategic missile facility in u.s. warren afb named in honor of wyoming s first united states senator, francis emroy warren (1844–1929), awarded medal of honor @ age 19 during american civil war.

united states army
fort russell 1867–1927

former u.s. army residence of general john j. pershing @ warren afb

when president lincoln , congress set plans transcontinental railroad, recognized need military installation protect union pacific workers potentially hostile indians. on 4 july 1867, railroad established mountain region headquarters @ crow creek crossing, later known cheyenne. few weeks later, u.s. cavalry moved temporary headquarters in cheyenne point 3 miles (5 km) west , established fort d. a. russell. thus, 1867 beginning of city , fort, , both have grown on years.

detachments of 30th infantry formed first garrison, under command of colonel john d. stevenson. brief time troops lived in tents, during winter of 1867–68 moved wood-frame quarters. dwellings set in shape of diamond, instead of rectangle, protect against harsh winter winds howled across treeless high plains. diamond opened east , measured 800 1,040 feet (320 m). entrance original fort @ point next present day chapel 1. first troops stationed here lived rough frontier life, meant coping rigors of weather in winter , coping indians in spring , summer.

in 1876, troops fort russell participated in great sioux indian wars, same in lieutenant colonel custer s forces defeated.

in 1884, fort russell made permanent post, because of strategic location. in 1885, war department ordered post rebuilt serve 8 infantry companies. army built 27 red brick buildings $100,000 replace older wood frame structures, , planted thousands of trees. many of brick buildings stables housed 20,000 horses , mules. 1885 1930, more 220 brick buildings erected; of them remain in use today. last expansion of base took place in 20th century when large barracks along randall avenue constructed. base maintains historic exterior of each building interior modifications today s living , working environment.

in 1866, congress formed 4 black regiments: 9th , 10th cavalry , 24th , 25th infantry. 25th infantry unit didn t serve @ fort d. a. russell. black soldiers called buffalo soldiers, title originating native americans likened soldiers spiritual buffalo.

in 1898, spanish–american war renewed importance post. after president mckinley sent message congress, 8th infantry left fort d. a. russell cuba. later year, wyoming national guard mustered service @ post , departed duty in philippines. in battle of manila (1898), guard first battalion reach walls of city , raise flag. in 1901, troops fort russell returned philippines put down insurrection independence during philippine–american war laying ground occupation. returned queen mary tudor cannon forged in 1557 , 2 of 3 balangiga bells, had been used insurrectionists signal launch ambush on american troops. seven-foot cannon, 1 of kind in america, , bells on display near base flagpole.

in 1906, secretary of war william howard taft recommended fort russell expand brigade-size post. 1910, construction of red brick quarters, two-story barracks, offices , stables had tripled area of post. during era, artillery units assigned there, , facility increased in size accommodate troop training latest 20th century weapons.

from 1913 1916, during mexican revolution, post artillery units stationed along border prevent struggle coming onto american soil. during world war i, post served mobilization point , training facility field artillery , cavalry groups. world war began, fort russell had become 1 of largest military posts in united states.

what stands quarters no. 2 today was, in 1885, post commander s home. tradition, post commander occupied largest house on post. hence, commander moved quarters no. 8 when built in 1903. quarters no. 2 assigned family of captain john black jack pershing, later led american forces in europe during world war i. pershing married u.s. senator francis e. warren s daughter, preferred staying father when husband on campaign. pershing promoted 4 ranks permanent rank of captain brigadier general within 2 years of marriage, senate s approval of nomination president theodore roosevelt aided father-in-law s influence.

fort warren, 1930–1945

in 1927, last cavalry units left installation, ending 60 years of cavalry history @ fort russell. president president hoover issued proclamation in 1930 renamed post fort francis e. warren, honor wyoming s territorial , first state governor. warren received medal of honor heroism during civil war age 19 u.s. senator 37 years , died age 85 in office november 1929; other well-known figures stationed here include general billy mitchell (the father of air force ), general mark clark (world war ii general in europe), general benjamin o. davis, sr. (first black general), dr. walter reed , singer sammy davis, jr.. entertainer chris ledoux grew @ warren afb. former wyoming supreme court justice richard v. thomas jag officer @ base 1956–1959.

during world war ii, fort warren training center 20,000 of quartermaster corps. more 280 wooden buildings constructed without insulation , interior walls temporarily house increased number of troops. in harsh wyoming winter, waking in these barracks meant shaking snow 1 s blanket before heading just-as-cold communal showers. prisoner of war camp constructed @ time.

united states air force

at end of world war ii, city officials in spokane, washington, had tried acquire joint use of facilities @ geiger field, spokane air training command (atc) had used aviation engineer training center. army air forces opposed sharing facilities civilian authorities, headquarters directed atc transfer training mission geiger field fort warren in wyoming, , training stopped on 15 may 1947.

air training command, 1947–1958

air training command emblem



these student repairmen install terminal box atop telephone pole. example of practical training received in atc installer repairman phase of fixed wire communications course @ francis e. warren afb

on 1 june 1947 air training command assumed jurisdiction of fort warren, 463d air force base unit activated manage support facilities, , 3450th technical training wing activated conducting training. training began on 7 july 1947. in september 1947, fort warren, along other army air force facilities, transferred newly established united states air force.

in march 1949, hq atc directed re-program, part of overall restructuring 48-group air force. statement of trained personnel requirements gave priority radio, radar, armament, , aircraft maintenance training programs. atc needed find additional space these courses. air force announced on 17 january (1949?) aviation engineering courses @ fort warren, exception of powerman , transfer army s engineer school @ fort belvoir, virginia. fixed wire courses @ scott afb went fort warren, scott had room expand radio mechanic school.

on 7 october 1949, fort francis e. warren became francis e. warren afb. result of korean war, air training command had process thousands of volunteer reservists; between late july , end of october 1950, 20,000 reservists brought on active duty, of done @ warren afb.

in 1957, in response budget reductions, air training command formed base utilization board examine facilities, looking @ existing , future training requirements. board concluded 2 bases released —francis e. warren , scott afb, illinois. warren afb had number of strikes against it, including poor weather conditions limiting training 7 months of year, lack of flying field, , many inadequate buildings. in 1958, air training command received permission headquarters usaf phase out training programs @ warren afb.

effective 1 february 1958, base transferred air training command strategic air command. training continued until 24 march 1959, , on 1 may atc discontinued 3450th technical training group.

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.

twentieth air force, 1991–present

the end of cold war , combat during operation desert storm in 1991 resulted in significant changes organizational structure of u.s. air force.

on 1 september 1991, twentieth air force reactivated strategic air command (sac) , became responsible land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles. on 1 june 1992, warren transitioned inactivating sac newly established air combat command, , on 1 july 1993 air force space command. realignment designed take advantage of similarities between missile launch , space launch operations. 90th strategic missile wing renamed 90th missile wing. wing became 90th space wing on 1 october 1997.

with ratification of strategic arms reduction treaty i, u.s. had until december 2001 reduce nuclear arsenal. result, 90th missile wing reduced fleet 3 reentry vehicles permissible single reentry vehicle configuration. on 6 august 2001, 150 minuteman iiis had been converted single reentry vehicle. warren missile fields maintain 150 minuteman iii missiles, split evenly between 319th, 320th, , 321st missile squadrons.

the 2005 base realignment , closure commission (brac) did not recommend making significant change base s current operations.

on 1 july 2008, 90th space wing re-designated 90th missile wing, per order of outgoing air force chief of staff general t. michael moseley way of refocusing unit on nuclear surety mission after 2007 united states air force nuclear weapons incident. 90th missile wing selected first missile base upgrade minuteman iii launch control centers rapid execution , combat targeting modification. existing lcc s had not been upgraded since 1960s. react replaced command , control consoles single, integrated, computer-processing console. improvements in automation allow combat crews more rapidly process message traffic , carry out execution orders.

on december 1, 2009 twentieth air force placed alongside other u.s. icbm , bombers similar missions under single command, air force global strike command, headquartered @ barksdale afb, louisiana.

on october 23, 2010 pandemonium stirs when warren losses communication status, 1 hour, 50 missiles sites due hardware issue.

challenge of maintenance, upgrade

aging equipment such analog phone lines or computer systems still use floppy discs have become subject of media attention; former missileers alerted television program 60 minutes, aired segment warren afb on 27 april 2014. usaf plans spend $19 million on improvements of warren afb missile silos , launch control centers in 2014, , asking on $600 million in 2015. congressional budget office has estimated cost of $355 billion upgrade triad of u.s. nuclear weapons systems including icbms, submarines , bombers.

the base recorded on list of superfund sites in wyoming because of contaminated land on site.

previous names

established fort francis e. warren, 1 january 1930 (united states army)


came under usaaf control, 31 may 1947


francis e. warren air force base, 7 october 1949–present

major commands assigned

air training command, 31 may 1947
strategic air command, 1 february 1958
air combat command, 1 june 1992
air force space command, 1 july 1993
air force global strike command, 7 august 2009 – present

base operating units

463d af base unit, 1 june 1947
3450th air base gp, 26 august 1948
389th air base gp, 1 february 1958 (rdsgd 389th combat support gp, 1 january 1959)
809th combat support gp, 1 july 1963
90th combat support gp (redesignated 90th mission support group), 1 august 1972 – present

major units assigned

intercontinental ballistic missile facilities

389th strategic missile wing


sm-65 atlasd/e, 1960–1965


sm-65 atlas sites of 706th/389th strategic missile wing

564th sms atlas-d (black)

565th sms atlas-d (blue)

566th sms atlas-e (purple)



sm-65d atlas missile site warren i, northwest of warren afb



564th strategic missile squadron (6 missiles)

564-a, 10.6 mi nw of federal wy 41°22′44″n 104°58′25″w / 41.37889°n 104.97361°w / 41.37889; -104.97361 (564-a)
564-b, 10.6 mi nw of federal wy 41°22′43″n 104°58′07″w / 41.37861°n 104.96861°w / 41.37861; -104.96861 (564-b)


565th strategic missile squadron (9 missiles)

565-a, 15.1 mi nw of hillsdale wy 41°23′32″n 104°38′30″w / 41.39222°n 104.64167°w / 41.39222; -104.64167 (565-a)
565-b, 8.2 mi wnw of carpenter wy 41°05′22″n 104°30′42″w / 41.08944°n 104.51167°w / 41.08944; -104.51167 (565-b)
565-c, 4.8 mi w of granite canon wy 41°05′08″n 105°08′45″w / 41.08556°n 105.14583°w / 41.08556; -105.14583 (565-c)


566th strategic missile squadron (9 missiles)

566–1, 6.5 mi sse of chugwater, wy 41°40′07″n 104°46′37″w / 41.66861°n 104.77694°w / 41.66861; -104.77694 (566-1)
566–2, 8.8 mi sw of lagrange, wy 41°33′39″n 104°17′56″w / 41.56083°n 104.29889°w / 41.56083; -104.29889 (566-2)
566–3, 2.5 mi n of pine bluffs, wy 41°13′05″n 104°03′56″w / 41.21806°n 104.06556°w / 41.21806; -104.06556 (566-3)
566–4, 2.2 mi sw of kimball, ne 41°12′36″n 103°41′09″w / 41.21000°n 103.68583°w / 41.21000; -103.68583 (566-4)
566–5, 5.1 mi n of grover, co 40°56′44″n 104°12′57″w / 40.94556°n 104.21583°w / 40.94556; -104.21583 (566-5)
566–6, 3.2 mi wnw of briggsdale, co 40°38′56″n 104°23′04″w / 40.64889°n 104.38444°w / 40.64889; -104.38444 (566-6)
566–7, 6.7 mi nne of nunn, co 40°47′17″n 104°43′10″w / 40.78806°n 104.71944°w / 40.78806; -104.71944 (566-7)
566–8, 1.9 mi w of greeley, co 40°25′46″n 104°51′42″w / 40.42944°n 104.86167°w / 40.42944; -104.86167 (566-8)
566–9, 8.8 mi nw of fort collins, co 40°40′43″n 105°12′13″w / 40.67861°n 105.20361°w / 40.67861; -105.20361 (566-9)

due remoteness of locations constructed in late 1950s , 1960s, warren atlas sites have not been redeveloped since closure in 1965. 564th sms a/b warren site abandoned. public road atlas road ends @ fence no trespassing sign 2 or 3 miles (4.8 km) actual site, , road past gate appears cracked , vegetation growing out of unmaintained surface. site itself, in private ownership, when viewed aerial images looks if has been abandoned decades, above ground launchers , support structures left when inactivated 50 years ago. roofs of structures still exist, others not. access roads deteriorated well, large areas of vegetation growing though cracks in surface.

the other atlas-d sites 565th sms intact, sites , c appear unused although both in private hands. site b has large numbers of abandoned vehicles on it, although again, of facilities appear still intact. atlas-e sites appear intact, in private hands, , other being overgrown, appear have been left elements , time since 1965.

90th missile wing


lgm-30b minuteman i, 1964–1974
lgm-30g minuteman iii, 1973–present
missile alert facilities (maf) (each controlling 10 missiles) follows:


recreation room, launch control support building n-01 near raymer, colorado





319th missile squadron
320th missile squadron
321st missile squadron




lgm-118a peacekeeper, 1987–2005.


with deployment of lgm-118a, 50 former minuteman iii silos converted. 400th strategic missile squadron flights p through t reassigned peacekeeper operational duty.

p-01, 18.0 mi n of hillsdale wy, 41°28′20″n 104°28′04″w / 41.47222°n 104.46778°w / 41.47222; -104.46778 (p-01)
q-01, 15.4 mi sxsw of chugwater wy 41°32′35″n 104°54′10″w / 41.54306°n 104.90278°w / 41.54306; -104.90278 (q-01)
r-01, 16.4 mi nw of meriden wy, 41°44′17″n 104°30′00″w / 41.73806°n 104.50000°w / 41.73806; -104.50000 (r-01)
s-01, 4.8 mi se of yoder wy, 41°52′23″n 104°13′20″w / 41.87306°n 104.22222°w / 41.87306; -104.22222 (s-01)
t-01, 9.1 mi exse of wheatland wy, 41°59′51″n 104°47′30″w / 41.99750°n 104.79167°w / 41.99750; -104.79167 (t-01)




complete list of 90th mw minuteman/peacekeeeper missile sites

since closure in 2000s (decade), peacekeeper missile alert facilities have been turned on gsa disposition. appear intact , in government hands. locked gates , fences surround abandoned buildings appear in condition. 50 launch silos (launch facilities) have been imploded, graded. other road leading former site, of still fenced , still government owned, nothing more natural vegetation there in aerial imagery.