45th Space Wing

45th Space Wing
The 45th Space Wing successfully launched a Delta IV-Heavy rocket carrying the NROL-32 classified payload for the National Reconnaissance Office 21 November 2010 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
Active	1949-Present
Country	United States
Branch	United States Air Force
Type	Satellite Launch
Part of	Air Force Space Command
Garrison/HQ	Patrick Air Force Base
Motto	Control of the battlefield begins here
Mascot	Sharks
Decorations	Air Force Outstanding Unit Award (12x) Air Force Organizational Excellence Award (3x) Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation
Commanders
Current commander	Brig Gen Wayne R. Monteith^[1]
Notable commanders	Donald G. Cook Lt.Gen. Susan Helms Robert C. Hinson
Insignia
Emblem of the 45th Space Wing

The 45th Space Wing (45 SW) is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the Fourteenth Air Force, stationed at Patrick Air Force Base, Florida. It commands Patrick AFB and the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The mission of the 45th Space Wing (45 SW) is to assure access to the high frontier and to support global operations.

The wing currently operates a number of rockets and missiles, including the Delta IV and Atlas V, and provides support for the Department of Defense, NASA, and commercial manned and unmanned space programs. The wing formerly operated the recently discontinued Titan IV rocket. It employs 9,512 military and civilians.^[2] Since August 4, 2015, it is under the command of Brigadier General Wayne R. Monteith.^[1]

The wing commander formerly served as the deputy DOD manager for the Department of Defense Manned Space Flight Support Office.

Units

Major units assigned to the 45 SW are:

45th Launch Group

The 45th Launch Group participates in receipt, inspection, processing, test, and launch of all flight hardware to ensure the successful launch of satellites to support national and Combatant Commander requirements

5th Space Launch Squadron

45th Operations Group

Located at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, the 45th Operations Group operates the Eastern Range and launches space vehicles for Department of Defense (DoD), NASA, the United States, and international commercial customers.

45th Medical Group
45th Mission Support Group

History

See also: 45th Operations Group; 45th Launch Group; 6555th Aerospace Test Group for additional lineage and history.

Organized to maintain and operate the proving ground facilities in coordination and collaboration with other agencies of the national guided missile program. Provided static and flight testing to meet requirements of Army, Navy, and Air Force research and development programs, including operational experimentation and training.

From May 1950 to May 1951, had separate operating agency status, assigned directly to Headquarters, United States Air Force. Maintained and operated the Eastern Test Range and affiliated facilities in support of Department of Defense (DOD), National Air and Space Administration (NASA), US Air Force, and other test and evaluation agencies, 1951–1977 and after 1979.

Operated "Down-Range" facilities at Antigua, Ascension Island, and Cape Canaveral AFS, Florida, 1951–1977 and after 1979.

After Oct 1979, launched DOD payloads into orbit and collected flight data for evaluation of ballistic missile systems launched from Eastern Launch sites for DOD, NASA, and commercial customers. Gave support for DOD manned/unmanned, NASA manned/unmanned, and commercial unmanned space programs while providing "host wing" responsibilities at Patrick AFB.

45th Space Wing accomplishments are:^[3]

Completing the Initial NAVSTAR II Constellation
U.S. Military Technology Missions
Foreign Military Missions
Civilian/Commercial Space Launches

Missions have included:

- X-Ray, Gamma Ray, Infrared, Microwave Anisotropy, and Extreme Ultraviolet Astronomy Missions
- Solar Wind Missions
- Asteroid Probes and Comet Encounters
- Missions to Mars and Mercury
- Kepler Spacecraft ‘Planetary Search’ Mission
- PALAPA B2R and PALAPA B4
- Britain’s BSB-R2 and Telenor’s THOR II and THOR III
- ASC-2, AURORA II and SATCOM 4
- INMARSAT-2 F-1 and INMARSAT-2 F-2
- DFS KOPERNIKUS 3
- GALAXY I-R and GALAXY IX
- KOREASAT-1 and KOREASAT-2
- BONUM-1
- GLOBALSTAR-1 through GLOBALSTAR-7
DELTA III, Delta IV, Titan IV and Atlas V Missions
NASA Space Shuttle launches
Atlas V Carrying X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle
NASA'S Geostationary Environmental Satellite (GOES-P)
Atlas V launch of Solar Global Observatory
Delta IV launch of Wideband Global SATCOM (WGS) high-capacity communications satellites
Intelsat-14 commercial communications satellite
NASA Ares 1-X launch
USAF Delta II final launch in 2009, inactivation of 1st Space Launch Squadron (45th LCG)

Lineage

Established as Air Force Division, Joint Long Range Proving Ground and organized on 1 Oct 1949

Re-designated: Long Range Proving Ground Division on 16 May 1950

Re-designated: Air Force Missile Test Center on 30 Jun 1951

Re-designated: Air Force Eastern Test Range (AFETR) on 15 May 1964

Inactivated on 1 Feb 1977

Re-designated Eastern Space and Missile Center (ESMC) and activated on 1 Oct 1979

Re-designated: 45th Space Wing (45 SW) on 12 Nov 1991

Assignments

Headquarters Command, USAF, 1 Oct 1949
United States Air Force, 16 May 1950
Air Research and Development (later, Air Force Systems) Command, 14 May 1951
National Range Division, 15 May 1964
Air Force Systems Command, 1 Feb 1972-1 Feb 1977
Space and Missile Test Organization, 1 Oct 1979
Space Systems Division, 1 Oct 1989
9th Space Division, 1 Oct 1990
Air Force Space Command, 1 Oct 1991
Fourteenth Air Force, 20 Sep 1993–Present

Components

Wings

4800th Guided Missile Wing (later, 6555th Guided Missile Wing; 6555th Guided Missile Group): 30 Dec 1950-7 Sep 1954
6541st Missile Test (later, 6541 Operations Group [Range]): 4 Sep 1951-7 Sep 1954

Groups

45th Launch Group: 1 Dec 2003–present
- previously designated as 45th Logistics Group, 12 Nov 1991-30 Nov 2003
45th Operations Group: 12 Nov 1991–present
45th Medical Group: 12 Nov 1991–present
45th Mission Support Group: 12 Nov 1991–present
6550th Test Group (Missile): 1 Jul-1 Oct 1955
6555th Guided Missiles Group (Test and Evaluation) (later, 6555th Aerospace Test): 15 Aug-21 Dec 1959; 1 Oct 1979-1 Oct 1990

Squadrons

1st Space Launch Squadron: 1 Oct 1990–Aug 2009
3rd Space Launch Squadron: 1 Oct 1990-Jun 2005
5th Space Launch Squadron: 14 Mar 1994-29 Jun 1998, 1 Dec 2003-present
- duties absorbed by 3 SLS on 29 Jun 1998
45th Launch Support Squadron: 30 Jun 2005–present
45th Operations Support Squadron: 12 Nov 1991–present
1st Range Operations Squadron: 1 Dec 2003–present
- previously 45th Range Operations Squadron, then 45th Range Squadron, 12 Nov 1991-1 Dec 2003
45th Security Forces Squadron: 12 Nov 1991–present
1st Pilotless Bomber: 1 Oct 1951-1 Feb 1952 (detached)
6550th Operations Squadron: 7 Sep 1954-1 Jul 1955; 1 Oct 1955-1 Feb 1960
6555th Guided Missile (later, 6555th Guided Missiles Squadron): 7 Sep 1954-1 Jul 1955; 1 Oct 1955-15 Aug 1959

Stations

Patrick AFB, FL, 1 Oct 1949-1 Feb 1977; 1 Oct 1979-Present

Notes

This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

1 2 45th Space Wing
↑ King, Ledyard (January 27, 2012). "High-tech focus may favor Brevard". Florida Today (Melbourne, Florida). pp. 2A.
↑ [Delta II and III Space Operations at Cape Canaveral, 1989 – 2009. by Mark C. Cleary 45th SPACE WING History Office]

External links

Air Force Space Command (AFSPC)

Air Forces	Fourteenth Twenty-Fourth

Centers	Space and Missile Systems Space Innovation and Development 614th Air and Space Operations 624th Operations Air Force Network Integration

Bases	Buckley Los Angeles Patrick Peterson Schriever Thule Vandenberg

Stations	Cape Canaveral Cape Cod Cavalier Cheyenne Mountain Clear Eldorado (closed) Kaena Point New Boston Onizuka (closed)

Wings

Combat Communications	689th

Information Operations	688th

Network Warfare	67th

Space	21st 30th 45th 50th 310th 460th

Groups

Air Base	61st

Combat Communications	3d 5th 201st 226th 254th 281st

Cyberspace Engineering Installation	38th

Information Operations	318th

Network Operations	26th

Network Support	690th

Network Warfare	67th

Squadrons

Combat Communications	3d 5th 23d 31st 32d 33d 34th 35th 42d 51st 52d 53d 54th 55th 147th 221st 232d 236th 239th 242d 263d 264th 265th 267th 269th 271st 282d 283d 291st 292d 293d

Command and Control	1st 2d 3d 4th 55th Mobile 119th 153d 222d 721st Mobile

Space Control	1st 4th 16th 20th 25th 76th 380th

Space Launch	1st 2d 3d 4th 5th

Space Operations	1st 2d 3d 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 19th 21st 22d 23d 111th 148th AFSPC

Space Warning	2d 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 137th 213th

Others	26th Space Aggressor (AFRC) 527th Space Aggressor (ACC) 3d Space Communications 50th Space Communications 850th Space Communications 1st Space Development 2d Space Development 3d Space Development 3d Space Experimentation 1st Space Surveillance 3d Space Surveillance 5th Space Surveillance 1st Air and Space Test 2d Test Operations 3d Space Test 4th Space Test 55th Space Weather

United States Air Force

Leadership

Structure

Commands	Reserve Air National Guard Field Operating Agencies Installations

Direct Reporting Units	District of Washington Operational Test and Evaluation Center USAF Academy

Major Commands	Air Combat Air Education and Training Air Mobility Global Strike Materiel Reserve Space Special Operations Europe & Africa Pacific

Numbered Air Forces	First Second Third Fourth Fifth Seventh Eighth Ninth Tenth Eleventh Twelfth Thirteenth Fourteenth Seventeenth Eighteenth Nineteenth Twentieth Twenty-Second Twenty-Third Twenty-Fourth Twenty-Fifth

Wings (ANG) Groups (ANG) Squadrons (ANG) Civilian auxiliary: Civil Air Patrol

Personnel and
training

Uniforms and
equipment

History and
traditions

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