321st Missile Wing LGM-30 Minuteman Missile Launch Sites

Emblem of the 321st Missile Wing

This is a list of the LGM-30 Minuteman missile Missile Alert Facilities and Launch Facilities of the 321st Missile Wing, 20th Air Force, assigned to Grand Forks AFB, North Dakota.

Overview

In 1962, the Air Force announced that that Grand Forks AFB would be first to deploy the LGM-30F Minuteman II missile. Flooding during the winter and spring of 1964 and 1965 proved to be a serious issue with the missile silos under construction, as many flooded components, such as diesel generators, had to be returned to the factory for rehabilitation.

On 1 November 1964, the 321st Strategic Missile Wing was activated by Strategic Air Command. As personnel began to report to the 321st, the wing trained for the day when the Minuteman II missile would be placed on alert status. In August 1965, the 321st received its first Minuteman II missile, shipped by train from assembly plant 77 at Hill AFB, Utah. During the following March, the base received the first Minuteman II to be shipped via aircraft, an Air Force first. On 26 April 25, 1966, the 447th Strategic Missile Squadron and its 50 Minuteman II missiles were declared operational. Additional flights came on line throughout 1966. On 7 December the 321st Strategic Missile Wing, with its component 446th, 447th, and 448th Strategic Missile Squadrons, became fully operational.

From December 1971 to March 1973, the 321st converted to LGM-30G Minuteman III missiles. These missiles represented a significant technological advancement, having multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles (MIRVs).

With the restructuring of the Air Force after the end of the Cold War in the early 1990s the 321st first came under Air Combat Command and then Air Force Space Command jurisdiction. In March 1995, the Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC) selected the 321st Missile Wing for deactivation. Initially downgraded to a Group in July 1994, the 321st was inactivated, with its three component missile squadrons on 30 September 1998.

Destruction of silos and control facilities began in October 1999 with A-04 being imploded on 6 October. The last silo (H-22) was imploded on 24 August 24 2001, being the last US silo destroyed per the 1991 START I treaty. Sites O-0 and N-33 were preserved by the North Dakota State Historical Society as the Ronald Reagan Minuteman Missile Site.

Facilities

Missile Alert Facility

Launch Control Center

Minuteman III Launch Facility

The Missile Alert Facility (MAF) consists of a buried and hardened Launch Control Facility (LCC) and an above-ground Launch Control Support Building (LCSB). MAFs were formerly known as Launch Control Facilities (LCFs) but terminology was changed in 1992 with the inactivation of Strategic Air Command (SAC). In addition, a MAF has a landing pad for helicopters; a large radio tower; a large "top hat" HF antenna; a vehicle garage for security vehicles; recreational facilities, and one or two sewage lagoons. The entire site, except for the helicopter pad and sewage lagoons are secured with a fence and security personnel. About a dozen airmen and officers are assigned to a MAF.

The underground LCC Launch Control Center (LCC) contains the command and control equipment for missile operations. It is staffed by the two launch officers who have primary control and responsibility for the 10 underground and hardened Launch Facilities (LF)s within its flight which contains the operational missile. Each of the five LCCs also has the ability to command and monitor all 50 LFs within the squadron. The LF is unmanned, except when maintenance and security personnel are needed.

A squadron is composed of five flights; flights are denoted by a letter of the alphabet with the facilities controlled by the flight being designated by a number, 01 through 11, with 01 being the MAF.

Units and locations

446th Missile Squadron

Activated by Strategic Air Command on 1 November 1963. Organized on 1 July 1965. Inactivated on 30 September 1998

447th Missile Squadron

Activated by Strategic Air Command on 1 November 1963. Organized on 1 Feburary 1965. Inactivated on 30 September 1998

448th Missile Squadron

Activated by Strategic Air Command on 1 November 1963. Organized on 1 September 1965. Inactivated on 30 September 1998

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

• Grand Forks AFB Minuteman Missile Site Coordinates

External links