21ST SPACE WING

The 21st Space Wing, headquartered at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, performs two very important space operations missions -- missile warning and space control. It is the Air Force's only organization responsible for providing missile warning and space control to unified commanders and combat forces worldwide.

The wing ...

- Provides early warning of strategic and theater ballistic missile attacks and foreign space launches.

- Detects, tracks and catalogs more than 8,000 objects in space, from those in near-earth orbit to objects up to 22,300 miles above the earth's surface.

- Consists of 37 squadrons in 27 locations in 10 countries.

- Acts as host unit for Headquarters, North American Aerospace Defense Command; Headquarters, U.S. Space Command; Headquarters, Air Force Space Command and the 302nd Airlift Wing.

- Operates and supports Cheyenne Mountain Air Station; Woomera Air Station, Australia; Thule Air Base, Greenland; and Clear Air Station, Alaska.

- Provides community support to the 50th Space Wing, Falcon Air Force Base, Colorado.

Operational Mission

The mission of the 21st Space Wing is to provide missile warning and space control to NORAD and USSPACECOM. The 21st Space Wing does this by operating a network of command and control units and ground- and space-based sensors operated by geographically separated units around the world.

Attack Warning

Space-based early warning is carried out by orbiting Defense Support Program satellites and their associated ground systems and personnel.  As the first system to detect missile launches, these satellites are critical sensors in the United States' and Canada's early warning system. The 21st Space Wing Defense Support Program squadrons send crucial missile and space launch detection and nuclear detonation reports to NORAD and USSPACECOM command centers at Cheyenne Mountain Air Station, Colorado. The 11th Space Warning Squadron, Falcon AFB, Colorado, provides theater ballistic missile warning direct to theater commanders.

Members of the 21st Space Wing operate and maintain a complex system of U.S. and foreign-based radars that detect and track ballistic missile launches, launches of new space systems and provide data on foreign ballistic missile events.

Today, ballistic missile warning is critically important to U.S. military forces. At least 20 nations currently have nuclear, biological or chemical weapons and the technology to deliver them over long distances. According to intelligence estimates, over the next 10 years, several Third World countries will develop the technology and capability to launch intercontinental ballistic missiles at the United States.

The 2nd Space Warning Squadron, Buckley Air National Guard Base, Colorado, controls, receives, processes and reports Defense Support Program mission information.

The 4th Space Warning Squadron, Holloman AFB, New Mexico, provides mobile Defense Support Program missile warning and reporting. It will be transferred to the Colorado Air National Guard in late 1996 and will be assigned to the 137th Space Warning Squadron at Greeley.

The 5th Space Warning Squadron at Woomera Air Station, Australia, is unique among 21st Space Wing units because it is assigned with the Australian 1st Joint Communications Squadron at the Joint Defense Facility in nearby Nurrungar. The facility is operated by the 21st Space Wing and Australian crews to conduct the Defense Support Program mission there.

The 11th Space Warning Squadron, Falcon AFB, Colorado, reached initial operational capability in March 1995. The squadron uses data from Defense Support Program satellites, as part of their Attack and Launch Early Reporting to Theater (ALERT), system to provide in-theater warning of tactical missiles and other threats in direct support of warfighters worldwide. It is the first operational missile warning unit to use technologies and procedures developed directly from the lessons of Desert Storm. The squadron provides near instantaneous accurate warning information on short-range ballistic missile launches.

The wing's ground-based radars are comprised of a sea-launched ballistic missile warning system , and a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System.

Sea Launched Ballistic Missile warning units are the 6th Space Warning Squadron, Cape Cod Air Station, Massachuttes, and the 7th Space Warning Squadron, Beale Air Force Base, California. Their mission is mainly to watch America's coasts for incoming sea-launched or intercontinental ballistic missiles, and warn the appropriate authorities.

The wing's two Ballistic Missile Early Warning System radar units are the 12th Space Warning Squadron, Thule Air Base, and the 13th Space Warning Squadron at Clear Air Station. The 21st Space Wing also has a detachment at Royal Air Force Fylingdales, United Kingdom, to coordinate cooperative missile warning and space surveillance with RAF counterparts.

Space Control

Space surveillance is a critical element of the space control mission and will be vitally important to support future theater military operations and assured availability of U.S. space forces.  Desert Storm proved once again that whoever controls the high ground has definite military advantage.

In addition to its wartime missions, space surveillance is important during peacetime.  As part of the space surveillance mission, the wing operates command and control as well as active and passive surveillance units. Nearly 8,000 items in orbit around the earth, ranging in size from a baseball to the Mir Space Station, are regularly tracked. Knowing the orbits of those objects is essential to prevent collisions when a new satellite is launched.

Members of the 21st Space Wing's 1st Command and Control Squadron provide collision avoidance support during each shuttle mission as well as maintaining an extensive satellite catalog. This catalog is used by U.S. civilian and military agencies when launching new satellites into space, as well as by U.S. allies.

The dedicated active radar space surveillance units are the 20th Space Surveillance Squadron, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, and the 19th Space Surveillance Squadron, Pirinclik Air Station, Turkey. In addition, other collateral and contributing missile warning and research radars are used to support the surveillance mission.

There are two types of passive space surveillance units: the Deep Space Tracking System, and the Low-Altitude Space Surveillance system. The 2nd Command and Control Squadron, Falcon AFB, provides command and control for all passive units.

Deep Space Tracking System antennas are located at the 3rd Space Surveillance Squadron, Misawa Air Base, Japan, and the 5th Space Surveillance Squadron, RAF Feltwell, United Kingdom. LASS systems are located at the 4th Space Surveillance Squadron, Lackland Air Force Base, Texas; Detachment 1, 3rd Space Surveillance Squadron, Osan Air Base, Republic of Korea; and the 17th Space Surveillance Squadron, RAF Edzell, United Kingdom.

The wing also controls and operates optical space tracking systems, under the 18th Space Surveillance Squadron, Edwards Air Force Base, California. The Ground-Based Electro-Optical Deep Space Surveillance system, is operated by Detachment 1, Socorro, New Mexico.; Detachment 2, Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territories; and Detachment 3, Maui, Hawaii. In addition, Detachment 3 also operates the Maui Optical Tracking and Identification Facility.

The 3rd Command and Control Squadron is set to stand up in early 1996 at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska.   It serves as an alternate processing and correlation node for Cheyenne Mountain Air Station. When necessary, it will assume responsibility for processing warning information and passing that information to forward users.

Mission Support

As host wing for the Peterson Complex, the 21st Space Wing provides complete base support services for Peterson Air Force Base and Cheyenne Mountain Air Station and certain support functions for Falcon Air Force Base, Colorado.

The wing also helps meet the medical, housing, educational, recreational and family support needs of assigned people, local retirees and their families. It also provides such services as personnel; security; civil engineering; communications and computer support; finance; transportation; flightline services; supply; and maintenance.

In addition, the wing provides mission and personnel support to all geographically separated units and provides host base support at Thule Air Base, Woomera Air Station, Clear Air Station, and Buckley Air National Guard Base, Colorado.

The wing's 721st Support Group is responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of facilities and equipment in Cheyenne Mountain Air Station.  This responsibility requires civil engineering, computer and communications and security support. The 721st ensures the space operators are able to continue with their mission.

The 4,200 military members, 840 Air Force civilians and 2,600 contractor employees of the 21st Space Wing located around the world are proud of their role in performing these vitally important missile warning and space control missions and in supporting the military people and families assigned to its units and bases.

Current as of September 1995