Francis E . Warren Air Force Base Francis E . Warren Air Force Base ( AFB ) is a United States Air Force base located approximately west of Cheyenne , Wyoming . It is one of three strategic missile bases in the United States . It is named in honor of Francis E . Warren . Warren AFB is the home of the 90th Missile Wing ( 90 MW ) , assigned to the Twentieth Air Force , Air Force Global Strike Command . The 90 MW operates the LGM - 30G Minuteman III ICBM , with launch facilities in Southeast Wyoming , Western Nebraska , and Northern Colorado . It is also the home of Twentieth Air Force , which commands all United States Air Force ICBMs . Warren AFB is the oldest continuously active military installation within the Air Force , being established by the United States Army as Fort David Allen Russell in 1867 . The facility came under United States Army Air Forces ( USAAF ) control on 1 June 1947 , then under United States Air Force ( USAF ) control when the USAF became a separate entity on 18 September 1947 . The 90th Missile Wing is commanded by Colonel Tracey Hayes . Twentieth Air Force is under the interim command of Major General Jack Weinstein . Warren AFB is delineated as a census - designated place by the U . S . Census Bureau . At the 2010 census it had a resident population of 3 , 072 . Units . The 90th Missile Wing , which was activated 1 July 1963 , with the original designation of the 90th Strategic Missile Wing , became the nation ' s first operational Intercontinental Ballistic Missile base with the introduction of the SM - 65D Atlas missile in 1958 . Today , the 90th MW operates 150 LGM - 30G Minuteman III ICBMs on full alert 24 - hours a day , 365 days a year . The 90 MW is organized into five groups : Other tenant units at Warren are : Operations facilities . Unlike most Air Force Bases , Warren Air Force Base has no runway for fixed - wing aircraft . The only conventional airfield ever located at F . E . Warren AFB was a single dirt strip . This field , never used by modern day pilots , was made famous by World War I ace Captain Eddie Rickenbacker who crashed his plane on the field and survived . The airfield was used in 1919 by the " Western Flying Circus , " then led by then - Major Carl " Tooey " Spaatz ( later promoted to general and the first Air Force Chief of Staff ) . The base does maintain two active 100 ' x 100 ' heliports ( north and south side ) which is primarily utilized by Air Force UH - 1N Twin Huey helicopters of the 37th Helicopter Squadron to ferry missile launch crews and maintenance personnel to various launch control centers and missile silos surrounding the base . History . Warren Air Force Base is named in honor of Wyoming ' s first United States Senator , Francis Emroy Warren ( 1844 – 1929 ) . Senator Warren was awarded the Medal of Honor at age 19 during the American Civil War . The installation has an exceptionally long record of continuous military use . The history of the base dates back to the Railroad Act of 1862 , when president Lincoln and Congress set plans for the transcontinental railroad , including a military installation on the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains in the Wyoming Territory , to protect Union Pacific workers from hostile Indians . From these pioneer origins , the base has evolved from a noteworthy frontier infantry and cavalry post into the largest , most modern strategic missile facility in the United States . United States Army . Fort Russell . When President Lincoln and Congress set plans for the transcontinental railroad , they recognized the need for a military installation to protect Union Pacific workers from hostile Indians . On 4 July 1867 , the railroad established its mountain region headquarters at Crow Creek Crossing , later known as Cheyenne . A few weeks later , the U . S . Cavalry moved from temporary headquarters in Cheyenne to a point west and established Fort D . A . Russell . Thus , 1867 was the beginning of a city and a fort , and both have grown together over the years . Detachments of the 30th Cavalry formed the first garrison , under the command of Colonel John D . Stevenson . For a brief time the troops lived in tents , but during the winter of 1867 – 68 they moved into wood - frame quarters . The dwellings were set in the shape of a diamond , instead of a rectangle , to protect against harsh winter winds that howled across the then treeless high plains . The diamond opened to the east and measured 800 by . The entrance to the original fort was at a point next to the present day Chapel 1 . The first troops stationed here lived the rough frontier life , which meant coping with the rigors of the weather in winter and with Indians in spring and summer . In 1876 , troops from Fort Russell participated in the Great Sioux Indian Wars , the same in which Lieutenant Colonel Custer ' s forces were defeated . Fort Russell was made a permanent post in 1884 because of its strategic location . In 1885 , the War Department ordered the post be rebuilt to serve eight infantry companies . The Army built 27 red brick buildings for $ 100 , 000 to replace the older wood frame structures , and planted thousands of trees . The last expansion of the base took place in the early 20th century when large barracks along Randall Avenue were constructed . Many of the early brick buildings were stables that housed nearly 20 , 000 horses and mules . From 1885 to 1930 , more than 220 brick buildings were erected ; most of them remain in use today . The base maintains the historic exterior of each building with appropriate interior modifications for today ' s living and working environment . In 1866 , Congress formed four black regiments : the 9th and 10th Cavalry and 24th and 25th Infantry . The 25th Infantry was the only unit that didn ' t serve at Fort D . A . Russell . Black soldiers were called " Buffalo Soldiers , " a title originating from Native Americans who likened the soldiers to the spiritual buffalo . In 1898 , the Spanish - American War brought renewed importance to the post . Soon after President McKinley sent a message to Congress , the 8th Infantry left Fort D . A . Russell for Cuba . Later , the Wyoming National Guard mustered into service at the post and departed for duty in the Philippines . In the battle for Manila , the Guard was the first battalion to reach the walls of the city and to raise the flag . In 1901 , troops from Fort Russell again went to the Philippines to help put down an insurrection and bring peace to the Pacific . They returned with a Queen Mary Tudor cannon forged in 1557 and the Bells of Balangiga . The seven - foot cannon , the only one of its kind in America , and the bells , which had been used by insurrectionists as a signal to launch an ambush on American troops , are on display near the base flagpole . In 1906 , Secretary of War William Howard Taft recommended Fort Russell expand to a brigade - size post . By 1910 , the construction of red brick quarters , two - story barracks , offices and stables had tripled the area of the post . During this era , artillery units were assigned there , and the facility increased in size to accommodate troop training with the latest 20th century weapons . From 1913 to 1916 , during the Mexican Revolution , post artillery units were stationed along the border to prevent the struggle from coming onto American soil . During World War I , the post served as a mobilization point and training facility for field artillery and cavalry groups . As World War I began , Fort Russell had become one of the largest military posts in the United States . What stands as quarters No . 2 today was , in 1885 , the post commander ' s home . By tradition , the post commander always occupied the largest house on post . Hence , the commander moved into quarters No . 8 when it was built in 1903 . Quarters No . 2 was then assigned to the family of Captain John " Black Jack " Pershing , who later led American forces in Europe during World War I . Pershing married U . S . Senator Francis E . Warren ' s daughter , but she preferred staying with her father when her husband was on campaign . Due to the influence of Warren , Pershing was promoted to general within six months of his marriage . Pershing was promoted to General of the Armies , a position shared by only one other man , General George Washington . Fort Warren . In 1927 , the last cavalry units left the installation , ending 60 years of cavalry history at Fort Russell . President President Hoover issued a proclamation in 1930 which renamed the post " Fort Francis E . Warren , " to honor Wyoming ' s territorial and first state governor . Warren was a U . S . Senator for 37 years and died in office in November 1929 at the age of 85 . He received the Medal of Honor when he was 19 , for heroism during the Civil War . Other well - known figures stationed here include General Billy Mitchell ( the " Father of the Air Force " ) , General Mark Clark ( World War II ( General in Europe ) , General Benjamin O . Davis , Sr . ( first black general ) , Dr . Walter Reed and singer Sammy Davis , Jr . . Entertainers Neil Diamond and Chris LeDoux grew up at this installation . Former Wyoming Supreme Court Justice Richard V . Thomas was a JAG officer at the base from 1956 – 1959 . During World War II , Fort Warren was the training center for up to 20 , 000 of the Quartermaster Corps . More than 280 wooden buildings were constructed without insulation and interior walls to temporarily house the increased number of troops . In the harsh Wyoming winter , waking up in these barracks often meant shaking snow from one ' s blanket before heading for the just - as - cold communal showers . A prisoner of war camp was also constructed at that time . United States Air Force . At the end of World War II , city officials in Spokane , Washington , had tried to acquire joint use of facilities at Geiger Field . Air Training Command used Geiger as its Aviation Engineer Training Center and the Army Air Forces was opposed to sharing facilities with civilian authorities . Instead , Headquarters USAAF directed ATC to transfer its training mission from Geiger Field to Fort Francis E . Warren in Wyoming . Air Training Command . ATC training stopped at Geiger Field on 15 May 1947 , and Air Training Command assumed jurisdiction of Fort Francis E . Warren on 1 June . The 463d Air Force Base Unit was activated that date to manage the support facilities , and the 3450th Technical Training Wing was activated for conducting training . Training began at Warren on 7 July . In September 1947 , Fort Warren , along with other Army Air Force facilities , was transferred to the newly established United States Air Force . In March 1949 , HQ ATC was directed to re - program , as a part of an overall restructuring to a 48 - group Air Force . The statement of trained personnel requirements gave priority to radio , radar , armament , and aircraft maintenance training programs . To meet these training requirements , it was necessary for ATC to find additional space for these courses . To do that , the Air Force announced on 17 January that all aviation engineering courses at Fort Warren , with the exception of powerman , would transfer to the Army ' s Engineer School at Fort Belvoir , Virginia . In addition , the fixed wire courses at Scott AFB went to Fort Warren , so that Scott had room to expand its radio mechanic school . On 7 October 1949 , Fort Francis E . Warren became Francis E . Warren AFB . As a result of the Korean War , Air Training Command had to in - process thousands of volunteer reservists . Between late July and the end of October 1950 , the command brought on active duty about 20 , 000 reservists . Most of this work was done at Warren AFB . In 1957 , in response to budget reductions , Air Training Command formed a base utilization board to examine all its facilities , looking at existing and future training requirements . That board concluded that two bases could be released — Francis E . Warren and Scott AFB , Illinois . Warren AFB had a number of strikes against it , including poor weather conditions that limited training to seven months of the year , lack of a flying field , and many inadequate buildings . In 1958 , Air Training Command finally received permission from Headquarters USAF to phase out its training programs at Francis E . Warren AFB . Effective 1 February 1958 , the base transferred from Air Training Command to Strategic Air Command . Training , however continued until 24 March 1959 , and on 1 May ATC discontinued its 3450th Technical Training Group . Strategic Air Command . With the transfer of Warren AFB to SAC , the 389th Air Base Group was established on 1 February 1958 to take control of the former ATC facilities . In addition the provisional 4320th Strategic Missile Wing was established that date with responsibility for 24 Atlas missile sites under Strategic Air Command . Although not the first designated missile wing , Warren became the first fully operational ICBM base in the United States Air Force . 706th / 389th Strategic Missile Wing . Originally , the project design for the above - ground SM - 65D Atlas ICBM launch and control facilities at " Site A " was to be completed by mid - May 1958 and construction finished in November 1959 . However , design revisions delayed the project several months . Construction began at a location northwest of Cheyenne in late 1958 for the facilities of the recently activated 706th Strategic Missile Wing , which would control the ICBMs . On 15 September 1959 , the first Atlas D missile to deploy away from Vandenberg AFB , California , went to the 564th Strategic Missile Squadron stationed at the Warren I complex . A month later , F . E . Warren became the recipient of the first air transported Atlas missile . With General Power ( the Commander in Chief of SAC ) present , the first Atlas D complex was turned over to the 564th SMS and declared operational on 9 August 1960 . As work proceeded at the Warren I complex , the Army Corps of Engineers contracted for yet another complex . In February 1959 , bids were opened for " Warren II , " a complex that would have three sites with three Atlas - D launchers at each . The Warren II site was ready in the summer of 1960 . The 565th Strategic Missile Squadron , activated on 1 December 1959 , operated the nine launchers . The Warren III site , designed for nine SM - 65E Atlas missiles would be scattered over a area at single " coffin " launch sites . The term " coffin " was used because the missile laid on its side underground with the coffin roof at ground level . This configuration offered limited protection for the launcher . On 1 October 1960 , the 549th Strategic Missile Squadron became the last Atlas - E SMS to be activated . The 549th SMS was redesignated 566th SMS on 1 July 1961 . On that same date the parent 706th Strategic Missile Wing stood down . Command responsibilities at Warren AFB were assumed by the recently activated 389th Strategic Missile Wing . In May 1964 , as the 565th and 565th SMS Atlas - D missiles were being phased out , the 389th Strategic Missile Wing received SAC ' s last operational readiness inspection for this system . In September , SAC inactivated the 564th SMS . During the following March , the 566th SMS Atlas - E ' s would also be deactivated , completing the phaseout of the Atlas Missile at Warren . 90th Missile Wing . The departure of the Atlas squadrons did not mark the end of F . E . Warren ' s role in the ICBM program . On 15 October 1962 , Morrison - Knudsen and Associates won the contract to construct 200 LGM - 30A Minuteman I missile silos over an area of Wyoming , Nebraska , and Colorado , located north and east of the base . On 1 July 1963 , the Air Force activated the 90th Strategic Missile Wing . Over the next year , four component strategic missile squadrons activated with the 400th SMS became the last Minuteman I " B " unit to stand up on 1 July 1964 . In November 1972 , SAC initiated the Minuteman Integrated Improvement Program . The program entailed silo hardening and upgrading command data buffers , which allowed for quicker missile retargeting . In addition to receiving upgraded silos and launcher control facilities , Warren also received new missiles . With conversion to the LGM - 30G Minuteman III model , Warren ' s last Minuteman IB model went off alert status in September 1974 . LGM - 118 Peacekeeper missiles . On 22 November 1982 , in a decision statement for Congress , President Ronald Reagan stated his plan to deploy the MX missile dubbed " Peacekeeper " ( later designated LGM - 118 Peacekeeper ) to superhardened silos located at F . E . Warren . Capable of carrying up to 10 independently targeted nuclear warheads , the Peacekeeper was designed to strengthen the ground - based strategic policy of the United States . The initial plan was to deploy 100 Peacekeepers in silos of the 400th and 319th Strategic Missile Squadrons . In July 1984 , construction began for Peacekeeper support facilities at Warren . From 1986 through 1988 , 50 Peacekeepers would be backfitted into silos formally occupied by Minuteman IIIs of the 400th Strategic Missile Squadron . In 2002 , President George W . Bush set a plan in motion to reduce the country ' s missile forces from 6 , 000 to between 1 , 700 and 2 , 200 . Russian president Vladimir Putin agreed to follow a similar plan . As part of this reduction , the Peacekeeper missiles would be taken off alert and inactivated . Inactivation of Peacekeepers began in 2002 , and the last missile was inactivated on 16 September 2005 . Squadron inactivation followed on 19 September 2005 . Twentieth Air Force . The end of the Cold War and combat during Operation Desert Storm in 1991 resulted in significant changes to the organizational structure of the United States Air Force . On 1 September 1991 , Twentieth Air Force was reactivated by Strategic Air Command and became operationally responsible for all land - based Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles . On 1 June 1992 , Warren transitioned from the inactivating SAC to newly established Air Combat Command , and finally , on 1 July 1993 to the Air Force Space Command . This realignment was designed to take advantage of the similarities between missile launch and space launch operations . The 90th Strategic Missile Wing was also renamed the 90th Missile Wing . The wing became the 90th Space Wing on 1 October 1997 . With the ratification of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty I , the United States had until December 2001 to reduce its nuclear arsenal . As a result , the 90th Missile Wing reduced the fleet from three reentry vehicles permissible to a single reentry vehicle configuration . On 6 August 2001 , all 150 Minuteman IIIs had been converted to a single reentry vehicle , beating the December deadline . Warren missile fields currently maintain 150 Minuteman III missiles , split evenly between the 319th , 320th , and 321st Missile Squadron s . The 2005 Base Realignment and Closure commission ( BRAC ) did not recommend making any significant change to the base ' s current operations . On 1 July 2008 , the 90th Space Wing was redesignated the 90th Missile Wing , per the order of outgoing Air Force Chief of Staff General T . Michael Moseley as a way of refocusing the unit on the nuclear surety mission after the 2007 United States Air Force nuclear weapons incident . The final transition for Twentieth Air Force occurred Dec . 1 , 2009 , placing all U . S . ICBM forces under Air Force Global Strike Command , headquartered at Barksdale AFB , Louisiana . This realignment ultimately placed ICBMs and bombers with similar missions under a single command . The 90th Missile Wing was selected as the first missile base to upgrade Minuteman III launch control centers with the rapid execution and combat targeting modification . Existing LCC ' s had not been upgraded significantly since being brought on line in the early 1960s . REACT replaced the command and control consoles with a single , integrated , computer - processing console . Major improvements in automation allow combat crews to more rapidly process message traffic and carry out execution orders if needed . Intercontinental ballistic missile facilities . Due to the remoteness of the locations where they were constructed in the late 1950s and early 1960s , the Warren Atlas sites have not been redeveloped since their closure in 1965 . The 564th SMS A / B Warren I site is completely abandoned . The public road " Atlas Road " ends at a fence with an " No Tresspassing " sign about 2 or from the actual site , and the road past the gate appears to be well cracked and vegetation is growing out of the unmaintained surface . The site itself , which is in private ownership , when viewed from aerial images looks as if it has been abandoned for decades , The above ground launchers and support structures left as they were when inactivated nearly 50 years ago . Roofs of some structures still exist , others do not . The access roads are very deteriorated as well , with large areas of vegetation growing though the cracks in the surface . The other Atlas - D sites for the 565th SMS are all intact , sites A and C appear to be unused although both are in private hands . Site B has large numbers of abandoned vehicles on it , although again , all of the facilities appear to be still intact . The Atlas - E sites appear to be intact , all in private hands , and other than being overgrown , appear to have been left to the elements and time since 1965 . Since their closure in the early 2000s ( decade ) , the Peacekeeper Missile Alert Facilities all have been turned over to the GSA for disposition . All appear to be intact and in government hands . The locked gates and fences surround abandoned buildings which appear in good condition . The 50 launch silos ( Launch Facilities ) have all been imploded , then graded . Other than a road leading to the former site , most of which are still fenced and are still government owned , nothing more than natural vegetation is there in aerial imagery . Geography . According to the United States Census Bureau , the base has a total area of 5 . 0 square miles ( 13 . 1 km² ) , of which , 5 . 0 square miles ( 12 . 9 km² ) of it is land and 0 . 04 square miles ( 0 . 1 km² ) of it is water . The total area is 0 . 79 % water . Demographics . As of the census of 2000 , there were 4 , 440 people , 639 households , and 631 families residing on the base . The population density was 888 . 3 people per square mile ( 342 . 9 / km² ) . There were 735 housing units at an average density of 147 . 0 / sq mi ( 56 . 8 / km² ) . The racial makeup of the base was 79 . 6 % White , 9 . 4 % African American , 0 . 5 % Native American , 2 . 2 % Asian , 0 . 3 % Pacific Islander , 4 . 4 % from other races , and 3 . 6 % from two or more races . Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8 . 8 % of the population . There were 639 households out of which 82 . 0 % had children under the age of 18 living with them , 92 . 2 % were married couples living together , 4 . 1 % had a female householder with no husband present , and 1 . 1 % were non - families . 1 . 1 % of all households were made up of individuals . The average household size was 3 . 59 and the average family size was 3 . 58 . On the base the population was spread out with 23 . 0 % under the age of 18 , 26 . 7 % from 18 to 24 , 48 . 4 % from 25 to 44 , and 1 . 8 % from 45 to 64 . The median age was 25 years . For every 100 females there were 201 . 2 males . For every 100 females age 18 and over , there were 259 . 4 males . The median income for a household on the base was $ 32 , 589 , and the median income for a family was $ 32 , 946 . Males had a median income of $ 25 , 247 versus $ 20 , 819 for females . The per capita income for the base was $ 18 , 426 . About 2 . 2 % of families and 2 . 4 % of the population were below the poverty line , including 2 . 6 % of those under the age of 18 .