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90th Missile Wing

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90th Missile Wing
Display of missiles operated by the wing
Active1951–60; 1963–present
CountryUnited States
BranchUnited States Air Force
RoleStrategic missile
Size3361 military and 964 civilians as of May 2016[1]
Part ofAir Force Global Strike Command
Garrison/HQFrancis E. Warren Air Force Base
Nickname(s)Mighty Ninety[1]
Motto(s)"Impavide"(Latin)
”Undauntedly”[2]
DecorationsAir Force Outstanding Unit Award[note 1]
Commanders
Current
commander		Col.Catherine V. Barrington
Vice commanderCol. John F. Hundley
Command ChiefCCMSylvetris Hlongwane
Insignia
90th Missile Wing emblem(Approved 9 December 1993)[3]
90th Strategic Missile Wing emblem(Approved 29 September 1964[2]
Patch with 90th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing emblem

The90th Missile Wingis a component ofTwentieth Air Force,stationed atFrancis E. Warren Air Force Baseand equipped withLGM-30G Minuteman IIIMissiles. It has served at Warren as a component ofStrategic Air Command,Air Combat Command,Air Force Space CommandandAir Force Global Strike Commandsince 1963.

Thewingwas first organized atFairchild Air Force Base,Washington as the90th Bombardment Wing,aBoeing B-29 Superfortressunit. After moving toForbes Air Force Base,Kansas, it served as a training unit forStrategic Air Commandunits andaircrewsin the B-29. In 1953 it converted to thestrategic reconnaissancemission, upgrading to theBoeing RB-47 Stratojetin 1954. After 1958 it trained reconnaissance crews with the B-47 and continued that mission until it was inactivated in 1960.

Thewingoperates 150LGM-30G Minuteman IIIintercontinental ballistic missileson fullalert24 hours a day, 365 days a year.[1]Its missiles are dispersed in hardened silos to protect against attack and connected to underground missile alert facilities through a system of hardened cables.[4]

Structure[edit]

The 90th Missile Wing is made up of a wing staff and five groups:

The90th Operations Groupis composed of three missile squadrons, an operations support squadron and a standardization and evaluation element. Each missile squadron is responsible for five missile alert facilities and 50 Minuteman III ICBMs. Its units include the319th,320thand321st Missile Squadronsand the 90th Operations Support Squadron.[4]

The 90th Maintenance Group maintains 150 missiles and associated launch facilities, as well as 15 launch control facilities spread between a three-state, 9,600 square-mile complex. It is composed of the 90th Missile Maintenance Squadron and the 90th Maintenance Operations Squadron and a Maintenance Quality Assurance Section.[4]

The 90th Mission Support Group provides civil engineering, transportation and logistics, communications, contracting, and personnel and services support to the wing and tenant units. The units of the 90th Mission Support Group include the 90th Civil Engineer Squadron, 90th Logistics Readiness Squadron, 90th Communications Squadron, 90th Contracting Squadron, and the 90th Force Support Squadron.[4]

The 90th Security Forces Group is composed of five squadrons. The 790th Missile Security Forces Squadron provides security for convoys and missile maintenance operations. The 90th Ground Combat Training Squadron is located atCamp GuernseyinGuernsey, Wyoming,[5]and provides security, pre-deployment, and antiterrorism/force protectiontraining for USAF personnel. The 90th Missile Security Forces Squadron provides security for 15 missile alert facilities and 150 launch facilities. The 90th Security Forces Squadron provides installation and weapons storage area security; police services; pass and registration functions; and reports and analysis duties. The 90th Security Support Squadron provides command and control for the missile field and access control for all missile field forces as well as all security forces training and equipment support.[4]

The 90th Medical Group is responsible for medical and dental care for more than 17,000 beneficiaries throughout Wyoming, Nebraska and northern Colorado. The group's mission is to maximize personnel health, fitness and readiness through emphasizing health promotion and preventive medicine. The units of the 90th Medical Group include the 90th Operational Medical Readiness Squadron and the 90th Healthcare Operations Squadron.[4]

History[edit]

Superfortress operations[edit]

Wing Boeing B-29[note 2]

The wing was first organized atFairchild Air Force Base,Washington in January 1951 as the90th Bombardment Wingand equipped with theBoeing B-29 Superfortress.While organizing, it was attached to the92d Bombardment Wing,whose commander also served as the commander of the 90th Wing.[6]In February, as part of a reorganization ofStrategic Air Commandwings, the 90th Wing's90th Bombardment Groupwas reduced to paper status and its squadrons were attached to the wing for operational control. In June 1952, this organization, which was designed to permit the wing commander to focus on the wing's combat units and the maintenance necessary to support combat aircraft, was formalized as the Dual Deputy Organization and thegroupwas inactivated and its squadrons were assigned to the wing.[7]

In March 1951, the wing moved toForbes Air Force Base,where it served primarily as a training unit. In May, it began serving as an Operational Training Unit for B-29aircrewsand mechanics of newly-activating units. The376th Bombardment Wingwas the first new Superfortress wing trained by the 90th, activating on 1 June 1951. In October, it was combat ready and moved toBarksdale Air Force Base,Louisiana, its permanent base.[8]The day the 376th Wing departed, the308th Bombardment Wingwas activated and began its training, which lasted until it moved toHunter Air Force Base,Georgia in April 1952.[9]The310th Bombardment Wingwas the last B-29 unit trained at Forbes. With its departure forSchilling Air Force Base,Kansas in September 1952, the B-29 operational training mission ended.[3][10]

In June, the wing added duty as a Replacement Training Unit, primarily providing individual training for aircrew being assigned to existingFar East Air ForcesB-29 units during theKorean War.[11][note 3]In November 1952 it also began training replacement crews for the RB-29reconnaissancemodel of the Superfortress andSHORANpersonnel forStrategic Air Command(SAC). These training activities continued through November 1953.[3]

Strategic reconnaissance[edit]

B-47 and KC-97 as flown by the wing

The wing began to fly strategic reconnaissance missions in September 1953.[3]The following year, it replaced its RB-29s with the jetBoeing RB-47 Stratojet,with the first B-47E arriving on 25 June, although crews had begun training in March.[12]One year later, the wing deployed as a unit toEielson Air Force Base,Alaska from 5 May until 31 August 1955, where it performed the final mapping of Alaska.[3][13]With the assignment of the90th Air Refueling Squadronin 1955, the wing began to flyair refuelingmissions as well as reconnaissance flights. In May 1958, the wing returned to the training mission serving as a combat crew training wing for RB-47 aircrews until it was inactivated on 20 June 1960.[3]The wing's personnel and equipment were transferred to the40th Bombardment Wing,which moved to Forbes on paper fromSchilling Air Force Base,Kansas the same day.[14]The 90th Air Refueling Squadron was reassigned to the 40th Wing upon that wing's arrival at Forbes.[15]

Strategic missiles[edit]

The wing was again organized in July 1963 atFrancis E. Warren Air Force Base,Wyoming as the90th Strategic Missile Wing.TheLGM-30B Minuteman Imissiles of the wing would replace theSM-65 Atlasmissiles of the inactivating389th Strategic Missile Wing.The replacement Minutemen would be more widely displaced and hardened than the Atlases they replaced.[4][16]

Initially, the wing supervised missile facility construction until July 1964, with its individual squadrons activating between October 1963 and July 1964 as missile launch facilities became operational.[3]The wing was initially equipped with 200LGM-30B Minuteman I,equipped with a single reentry vehicle.[4]Beginning in June 1973, the Minuteman I missiles began to be replaced by LGM-30G Minuteman IIIs, which could carry up to three reentry vehicles, with the400th Strategic Missile Squadronbecoming the first Minuteman III squadron in the wing.[4][17]The changeout was completed by October 1974.[3]However, in 2001 and in compliance with theStrategic Arms Reduction Treaty,these missiles were limited to a single reentry vehicle[4]

The wing supervisedLGM-118 Peacekeeperpersonnel training and facility preparation beginning Jun 1985. The Peacekeeper, which could carry ten independently targeted reentry vehicles,[4]was fully operational with the wing's400th Strategic Missile Squadronon 30 December 1986. The Peacekeeper system continued in operation in addition to the wing's Minuteman missiles until September 2005, when it was retired and the 400th Squadron inactivated.[3][18]

Although it remained a component ofTwentieth Air Force,starting in 1992, the wing was reassigned under three different major commands over the next twenty years. When SAC was inactivated on 1 June 1992, the wing, along with its other combat missile units, became part ofAir Combat Command.[4]On 1 July 1993, after being redesignated as the90th Space Wing,and with the idea to take advantage of the similarities between the missile and other space missions, the wing became part ofAir Force Space Command.On 1 December 2009, the wing and other missile wings were reunited with the global bomber force underAir Force Global Strike Command.[4]

Lineage[edit]

  • Established as the90th Bombardment Wing,Medium on 20 December 1950
Activated on 2 January 1951
Redesignated90 Strategic Reconnaissance Wing,Medium on 16 June 1952[19][note 4]
  • Discontinued on 20 June 1960
  • Redesignated90 Strategic Missile Wing(ICBM-Minuteman) on 21 February 1963
Organized on 1 July 1963
Redesignated90 Missile Wingon 1 September 1991
Redesignated90 Space Wingon 1 October 1992
Redesignated90 Missile Wingon 1 July 2008[3]

Assignments[edit]

Operational components[edit]

Groups
Squadrons.
  • 90th Air Refueling Squadron: 5 August 1955 – 20 June 1960
  • 319th Bombardment Squadron (later 319th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, 319th Strategic Missile Squadron): attached 16 February 1951 – 15 June 1952, assigned 16 June 1952 – 20 June 1960, 1 October 1963 – 1 September 1991
  • 320th Bombardment Squadron (later 320th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, 320th Strategic Missile Squadron): attached 16 February 1951 – 15 June 1952, assigned 16 June 1952 – 20 June 1960, 8 January 1964 – 1 September 1991
  • 321st Bombardment Squadron (later 321st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, 321st Strategic Missile Squadron): attached 16 February 1951 – 15 June 1952, assigned 16 June 1952 – 20 June 1960, 9 April 1964 – 1 September 1991
  • 400th Strategic Missile Squadron: 1 July 1964 – 1 September 1991[3]

Stations[edit]

  • Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington, 2 January 1951
  • Forbes Air Force Base, Kansas, 14 March 1951 – 20 June 1960
  • Francis E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming 1 July 1963 – present[3]

Aircraft and Missiles[edit]

  • Boeing B-29 Superfortress, 1951–1954
  • Boeing RB-29 Superfortress, 1951, 1952–1954
  • Boeing TB-29 Superfortress, 1951–1952
  • Boeing KB-29 Superfortress, 1953–1954
  • Boeing RB-47 Stratojet, 1954–1960
  • Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter,1955–1960
  • LGM-30B Minuteman I, 1964–1974
  • LGM-30G Minuteman III, 1973–present
  • LGM-118 Peacekeeper, 1986–2005[20]
  • Bell UH-1 Huey,1993–2015[21]

Awards and campaigns[edit]

Award streamer Award Dates Notes
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 July 1968 – 30 June 1969 90th Strategic Missile Wing[3]
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 July 1973 – 30 June 1975 90th Strategic Missile Wing[3]
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 July 1982 – 30 June 1984 90th Strategic Missile Wing[3]
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 July 1987 – 30 June 1989 90th Strategic Missile Wing[3]
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 October 1994 – 30 September 1995 90th Space Wing[3]
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 September 1996 – 31 August 1998 90th Space Wing[3]
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 October 1999 – 30 September 2000 90th Space Wing[3]
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 January 2001 – 31 December 2001 90th Space Wing[3]
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 October 2003 – 30 September 2005 90th Space Wing[3]
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 October 2005 – 30 September 2007 90th Space Wing[3]
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 June 2008 – 31 May 2010 90th Space Wing (later 90th Missile Wing)[22]
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 January 2011 – 31 December 2012 90th Missile Wing[22]

The wing won the SAC missile combat competition and theBlanchard Trophyin 1973 and 1984 and in 2010 and 2011 as the best missile wing in Air Force Global Strike Command. It was awarded theOmaha Trophyas the most outstanding wing in SAC in 1983 and in 2007 as the best missile wing inUnited States Strategic Command.[23]The unit won the Col Lowell F. McAdoo trophy for best missile wing operations in SAC and the Lee R. Williams trophy as the most outstanding missile wing in 1988.[3]In 1989, the wing's maintenance complex won the Chadwell Trophy as the best missile maintenance unit in SAC and repeated in 1992 as the best in Air Combat Command.[23]Individual squadrons of the wing have won other command competition awards, including two additional awards of the Blanchard Trophy.[24]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^In addition, the wing is entitled to display the awards and campaigns of the90th Bombardment Groupby temporary bestowal. Robertson, AFHRA Factsheet, 90th Missile Wing
  2. ^Aircraft is Boeing B-29-100-BW Superfortress serial 45-21846
  3. ^Replacement Training Units trained individuals to fill positions in existing units.SeeGoss, p. xxxvi
  4. ^In an apparent repeated typo, both Ravenstein and Robertson give this date as 1956. Ravenstein, p. 123, Robertson, Factsheet, 90 Missile Wing. However, compare Maurer,Combat Squadrons,pp. 390, 392, 394 (redesignation of 319th, 320th and 321st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadrons in 1952).

Citations[edit]

  1. ^abc"F.E. Warren Air Force Base: Units".90th Missile Wing Public Affairs.Retrieved8 May2016.
  2. ^abRavenstein, pp. 124–125
  3. ^abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyRobertson, Patsy (6 April 2012)."Factsheet 90 Missile Wing (AFGSC)".Air Force Historical Research Agency.Retrieved8 May2016.
  4. ^abcdefghijklm"90 MW Fact Sheet".90th Missile Wing Public Affairs. 19 August 2010.Retrieved8 May2016.
  5. ^"90 GCTS welcomes new commander".F.E. Warren Air Force Base.Retrieved7 June2021.
  6. ^"Abstract, History 92 Bombardment Wing Jan 1951".Air Force History Index.Retrieved9 May2016.
  7. ^Robertson, Patsy (6 April 2012)."Factsheet 90 Missile Wing (AFGSC)".Air Force Historical Research Agency.Retrieved8 May2016.;Deaile, pp. 175–176
  8. ^Ravenstein, pp. 200–202
  9. ^Robertson, Patsy (27 August 2015)."Factsheet 308 Armament Systems Wing (AFMC)".Air Force Historical Research Agency. Archived fromthe originalon 3 March 2016.Retrieved8 May2016.
  10. ^Kane, Robert B. (23 December 2010)."Factsheet 310 Space Wing (AFRC)".Air Force Historical Research Agency.Retrieved9 May2016.
  11. ^"Abstract, History 90 Bombardment Wing".Air Force History Index. 1 October 1951.Retrieved9 May2016.
  12. ^90th Missile Wing Heritage Pamphlet, pp. 3, 15
  13. ^90th Missile Wing Heritage Pamphlet, p. 15
  14. ^Ravenstein, p. 68
  15. ^"Abstract, History 90 Strategic Reconnaissance Wing Apr 1960".Air Force History Index.Retrieved9 May2016.
  16. ^Mueller, pp. 184–185
  17. ^90th Missile Wing Heritage Pamphlet, p. 4
  18. ^Edwards, 2 Lt Joshua S. (20 September 2005)."Peacekeeper missile mission ends during ceremony".90th Space Wing Public Affairs. Archived fromthe originalon 10 February 2012.Retrieved8 May2016.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  19. ^"Abstract, History 90 Strategic Reconnaissance Wing Jun 1952".Air Force History Index.Retrieved9 May2016.
  20. ^Aircraft and missiles in Robertson, Factsheet, 90 Missile Wing except as noted
  21. ^Robertson, Patsy (5 May 2010)."Factsheet 37 Helicopter Squadron (AFGSC)".Air Force Historical Research Agency.Retrieved5 August2014.
  22. ^ab90th Missile Wing Heritage Pamphlet, p. 35
  23. ^ab90th Missile Wing Heritage Pamphlet, p. 6
  24. ^90th Missile Wing Heritage Pamphlet, pp. 3–10

Bibliography[edit]

Public DomainThis article incorporatespublic domain materialfrom theAir Force Historical Research Agency

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]

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