Minot Air Force Station Minot ( Also known as Velva ) Air Force Station ( ADC ID : P - 28 NORAD ID : Z - 28 ) [ Permanent Installation Number ( PIN ) : 1445 ; Installation Location Code ( ILC ) : QJVM ] ) is a closed United States Air Force General Surveillance Radar station . It is located south of Minot , North Dakota ; on the west side of 83 . It was closed in 1979 . A portion of the property was reopened in 1984 as the Minot Communications Site and served until 1997 . Minot Air Force Station was the first major Air Force installation in North Dakota , even predating the two " large " bases , Minot Air Force Base and Grand Forks Air Force Base . History . Minot Air Force Station was part of the last batch of twenty - three radar stations constructed as part of the Air Defense Command permanent network . It was activated on 20 May 1951 at Velva , ND , and declared completely operational in 1952 . The 786th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron began operations with AN / FPS - 3 and AN / FPS - 5 radars in April 1952 , and initially the station functioned as a Ground - Control Intercept ( GCI ) and warning station . As a GCI station , the squadron ' s role was to guide interceptor aircraft toward unidentified intruders picked up on the unit ' s radar scopes . It was named Minot Air Force Station on 1 December 1953 . During 1957 an AN / GPS - 3 search radar saw brief use . In 1958 the original radars were replaced by AN / FPS - 20 search and AN / FPS - 6 height - finder sets . A second height - finder set , AN / FPS - 6 B , was installed during the following year . During 1961 Minot AFS joined the Semi Automatic Ground Environment ( SAGE ) system , initially feeding data to DC - 20 at Malmstrom AFB , Montana . After joining , the squadron was redesignated as the 786th Radar Squadron ( SAGE ) on 15 July 1961 . The radar squadron provided information 24 / 7 the SAGE Direction Center where it was analyzed to determine range , direction altitude speed and whether or not aircraft were friendly or hostile . By the end of 1961 the search set had been upgraded and redesignated as an AN / FPS - 66 . On 31 July 1963 , the site was redesignated as NORAD ID Z - 28 . An AN / FPS - 26 A height - finder radar was installed in 1964 , and the AN / FPS - 6 was retired . The AN / FPS - 6B was upgraded to an AN / FPS - 90 also that year . In 1964 the site received an AN / FPS - 27 search radar which became fully operational in early 1965 . The AN / FPS - 66 was removed later in 1965 . In 1968 the AN / FPS - 90 was retired . In addition to the main facility , Minot operated three unmanned AN / FPS - 14 ( P - 28A ) and AN / FPS - 18 ( P - 28B / C ) Gap Filler sites : The Alexander site was reassigned to Minot after Dickinson AFS ( Z - 177 ) closed in 1965 . The site is now home to the Watford City Joint Surveillance System ( JSS ) ( ARSR - 4 ) LRR site ( Z - 300 / J - 76 ) . Over the years , the equipment at the station was upgraded or modified to improve the efficiency and accuracy of the information gathered by the radars . In early 1979 the Air Force announced that the station would be closing due to what was called " redundancies with more strategically located radars " . On 29 September 1979 the 786th Radar Squadron was inactivated and the station was closed . In 1984 , a portion of the station was reopened by the USAF as the Minot Communication Site . It was closed again in 1997 and struck from the USAF property register and liquidated " ca " . 1998 . Minot AFS has been sold to civilian interests , and has been reused as a housing subdivision colloquially known as the " Radar Base " . The station after standing derelict for decades has now been torn down . Buildings and facilities . Buildings on the station include :