page_title: 91st Missile Wing
section_title: 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing
hierarchical_section_title: 91st Missile Wing / History / 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing
caption_attribution_description: Cover page of a promotional pamphlet of the U.S. Air Force 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, Medium, showing a North American RB-45C Tornado (s/n 48-033), in the early 1950s.
context_page_description: The 91st Missile Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Global Strike Command Twentieth Air Force. It is stationed at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota as a tenant unit.
  The 91 MW is one of the Air Force's three intercontinental ballistic missile wings. The missile wing, whose members are known as the Rough Riders, is responsible for defending the United States by maintaining a fleet of 150 Minuteman III missiles and 15 Launch Control Centers located in underground facilities scattered across the northwest part of the state. The wing's missile complex stretches over 8,500 square miles—approximately the same size as Massachusetts.
  The wing's on-alert missiles are under the operational control of the nation's strategic war-fighting command, U.S. Strategic Command, based at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska.
  The wing's predecessor, the World War II 91st Bombardment Group was a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress unit formed at MacDill Field, Florida and subsequently stationed with Eighth Air Force in England. It was one of the first United States Army Air Forces heavy bombardment groups deployed to Europe in 1942.
context_section_description: The 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing was constituted 11 October 1948 and activated 10 November at McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey as one of the first wings organized under the United States Air Force wing base reorganization (Hobson Plan).  Under this plan, it was assigned the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Group, which had been at McGuire for four months, as its operational element.  The wing and group moved to Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana in 1949. RB-29J bombers were assigned to the wing and its primary mission was global strategic reconnaissance. The group was inactivated in June 1952 when Strategic Air Command converted to the Dual Deputate organization. Under this plan flying squadrons reported to the wing Deputy Commander for Operations and maintenance squadrons reported to the wing Deputy Commander for Maintenance.  The squadrons had been attached to the wing and the group reduced to a paper unit in February 1951.
  In 1950 the wing began receiving air refueling aircraft, first modified KB-29s, then the Boeing KC-97 Stratotanker.  In 1950, the 91st has redesignated the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, Medium. At Barksdale, its wing headquarters was integrated with that of the 301st Bombardment Wing from April 1950 to February 1951. Although each wing conducted independent tactical operations, both were commanded by the same headquarters. The wing detached components for up to three months, primarily to England, and maintained detachments from other units, to provide ongoing reconnaissance of overseas areas.
  On 11 September 1951, the Wing' moved to Lockbourne Air Force Base, Ohio from Barksdale.  The mission of the 91st SRW was to provide aerial reconnaissance and mapping services.  It was equipped with aircraft fitted with cameras to perform this mission, including B/RB-45 and the B/YRB-47.
  When the wing moved to Lockbourne, a detachment of the wing deployed to Yokota Air Base, Japan, performing combat reconnaissance for Far East Air Forces over the Korean Peninsula flying with RB-29 Superfortresses.  Over North Korea, RB-29s were confronted daily by People's Liberation Army Air Force MiG-15s and were no longer able to perform reconnaissance, targeting, and bomb-damage assessment photography with impunity.
  The RB-45C unit was attached to the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron and began flying reconnaissance missions over northwestern Korea. The RB-45Cs were able to evade the MiGs for several months, but on 9 April 1951 one of the RB-45Cs had a close call and was barely able to escape a numerically superior enemy. At that time, it was decided that RB-45s could no longer go into northwestern Korea without fighter escort.  Another close call on 9 November 1951 caused the RB-45s to be restricted from entering northwestern Korean airspace in daylight even when fighter escort was available. In January 1952, the 91st Squadron was ordered to convert to night operations. Some RB-45Cs have painted all black so that they would not show up on enemy searchlights. However, the RB-45s were not well suited for night photography because the aircraft buffeted too badly when the forward bomb bay doors were opened to drop flash bombs. The RB-45s were withdrawn from the Korean theatre shortly thereafter, bringing the Korean experience with the RB-45 to an end.
  On 29 July 1952, A 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing RB-45C commanded by Major Louis H. Carrington made the first nonstop trans-Pacific flight by a multi-engine jet aircraft.  The plane flew from Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska to Yokota Air Base in Japan. Major Carrington refueled twice from KB-29s along the way. This feat earned the crew the 1952 Mackay Trophy for the most meritorious USAF flight of the year.
  The 91st SRW won the SAC reconnaissance, photographic, and navigation competition and the P. T. Cullen Award in 1955 and 1956. From Aug to November 1956 most of the wing deployed overseas in detachments to North Africa, Newfoundland and Greenland. These detachments were not under the operational control of the small establishment remaining at Lockbourne.
caption: Cover of promotional pamphlet of the 91st SRW[note 2]
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