Phased Transfer Began In August
Air Force Global Strike Command assumes the U.S. Air Force's
Intercontinental Ballistic Missile mission Tuesday. The transfer of
the mission is part of a phased approach, which began in August
with the activation of the Global Strike Command, to unify all Air
Force nuclear-capable assets under one command, officials said.
"We are well on our way to consolidating all of our Air Force
assets in this critical mission area under a single command -- one
that will serve as a single major command voice to maintain the
high standards necessary for stewardship of our nation's most
powerful weapons," said Lt. Gen. Frank G. Klotz, commander of the
Global Strike Command.
The new command gains three missile wings, one each at F.E.
Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming; Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana;
and Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, with the assumption of the
entire 20th Air Force mission, including that organization's
responsibility for all of the United States' 450 ICBMs.
The 576th Flight Test Squadron at Vandenberg Air Force Base,
California, as well as the 625th Strategic Operations Squadron at
Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, also now come under the Command's
responsibility. Previously, all of those units were part of Air
Force Space Command.
"The creation of this new command reflects the Air Force's firm
and unshakable conviction that nuclear deterrence and global strike
operations are a special trust and responsibility - one that we
take very seriously," Klotz said.
On February 1, Global Strike Command also will gain 8th Air
Force, based at Barksdale, and along with it, 8th Air Force's
nuclear-capable bombers. At that time, the command also will
acquire the B-52 Stratofortress wings at Barksdale and Minot, and
the B-2 Spirit wing at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri.
The Air Force Global Strike Command was established in an effort
to boost security and reduce errors. In a 2007 incident, nuclear
weapons were loaded aboard a B-52 bomber at Minot Air Force Base
and flown to Barksdale before the mistake was discovered. In
another incident, nuclear nose cones mistakenly were shipped to
Taiwan. As a result, then-Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne and
then-Air force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley resigned.
Another 15 officers, including six generals, were disciplined.
The new command is part of a roadmap to improving the Air
Force's Stewardship of its nuclear program, Air Force Secretary
Michael B. Donley said during an October 2008 Pentagon media
roundtable to introduce the plan.
"This is a critical milestone for us. It's a new starting point
for reinvigoration of this enterprise," he said then. "The changes
we make today will help us focus on this enterprise regardless of
other changes in Air Force missions along the way, and regardless
of how big or small the nuclear enterprise is."
NTSB Prelim: Piper PA-23
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