АҚШ, Монтана штатындағы Малмстром әскери базасы

Military base in Montana, United States

Malmstrom Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base in Cascade County, Montana, United States, adjacent to the city of Great Falls. It was named in honor of World War II POW Colonel Einar Axel Malmstrom. It is the home of the 341st Missile Wing (341 MW) of the Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau has defined Malmstrom Air Force Base as a census designated place (CDP). It had a population of 3,472 at the 2010 census.

Malmstrom Air Force Base traces its beginnings back to 1939 when World War II broke out in Europe. Concern about the war caused the local Chamber of Commerce to contact two Montana senators, Burton K. Wheeler and James E. Murray and request they consider development of a military installation in Great Falls. In addition, appeals were made to the Secretary of War, Harry H. Woodring. In 1941, the Civil Aeronautics Authority provided the money for the development of the Great Falls Municipal Airport. In May 1942, construction began on an Army Air Corps base six miles (10 km) east of Great Falls. The base was known as East Base. In November 1942, a survey team evaluated an area near the Green Mill Dance Club and Rainbow Dam Road approximately east of Great Falls. Great Falls, along with ten other northern tier sparsely populated sites, was considered for a heavy bomber training base. Construction began on Great Falls Army Air Base (AAB) on 8 June 1942. The base was informally known as East Base since the 7th Ferrying Group was stationed at Great Falls Municipal Airport on Gore Hill (known as Gore Field during its military use). Its mission was to establish an air route between Great Falls and Ladd Field, Fairbanks, Alaska, as part of the United States Lend Lease Program that supplied the Soviet Union with aircraft and supplies needed to fight the German Army. Upon completion of the B 17 training program, in October 1943, Great Falls Army Air Base was transferred to the Air Transport Command (ATC) and units from Gore Field were transferred to the base. The base was considerably expanded when more buildings were constructed, including a consolidated mess, a post exchange, a theater, and a 400 bed hospital. Air Transport Command also established aerial port facilities for passengers and cargo, as well as a flight service center. The ATC 90th Ferrying Squadron (7th Ferrying Group) was assigned to the base which performed operations in support of the Lend Lease Program with the Soviet Union. Aircraft shipments to the Soviet Union stopped in September 1945, when World War II ended, with approximately 8,000 aircraft having been processed in a 21 month period. MATS reopened the C 54 Flight Training School as the 1272 Medium Transition Training Unit (Squadron) in May 1950, one month before the Korean War began. The unit's primary mission was the routing and scheduling of flights throughout the Pacific Ocean region and in support of Allied forces in the conflict. The 1701st ATW was later replaced by the 1300th Air Base Wing.

Originally named Great Falls Army Air Base, later Great Falls Air Force Base, the facility was renamed Malmstrom Air Force Base on 1 October 1955 in honor of Colonel Einar Axel Malmstrom (1907–1954). Shot down on his 58th combat fighter mission in World War II, Malmstrom became the US commander of Luftwaffe Stalag Luft I South Compound, a prisoner of war camp at Barth, Germany. After his release and return to active Air Force service, he died in the crash of a T 33 Shooting Star trainer on 21 August 1954 near Great Falls Air Force Base. In the short period of his tenure as vice wing commander, Colonel Malmstrom endeared himself to the local community. Saddened by the loss, the people of Great Falls began a drive to rename the base after him.

Great Falls (later Malmstrom AFB) played a major aerial defense role in North American air defense mission. Although the base was not assigned to Air Defense Command, the attached 29th Air Division was activated at Great Falls AFB in early 1950, bringing with them command and control authority of fighter interceptor squadrons, an aircraft control and warning squadron, and ground observer detachments in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, and parts of Nevada, Utah, and Colorado as part of the Air Defense Command Western Air Defense Force. The 29th Fighter Interceptor Squadron was activated in 1953 and remained at Malmstrom until 1968, initially flying F 94C Starfire and later F 101 Voodoo interceptors. Great Falls was reassigned to the Central Air Defense Force at Richards Gebaur Air Force Base in 1953. The 29th Air Division's area of responsibility changed to include Montana, North and South Dakota and Nebraska. The 29th supervised the training of its units, and participated in numerous training exercises. On 1 July 1961, the 29th AD was relocated to Richards Gebaur AFB, Missouri. By 1954, several aircraft control and warning (radar) squadrons had been formed at the base. The 903d Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron was one of them, and operated an AN/TPS 1D (termed a "gap filler"). This radar was used probably for training purposes. The 903rd AC&W Squadron subsequently relocated to Gettysburg AFS, South Dakota. In 1957, under the control of the 801st Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron, the Malmstrom AFB radar station became operational with AN/FPS 20 search and AN/FPS 6 height finder radars. A second AN/FPS 6 series height finder radar was added in 1960, and subsequently was upgraded to an AN/FPS 90 set. In 1959 Malmstrom was performing air traffic control duties for the FAA, and joined the Semi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) system on 1 March 1961, the squadron being redesignated as the 801st Radar Squadron (SAGE). In 1964 Malmstrom received an AN/FPS 24 search radar, replacing the AN/FPS 20. The 801st Radar Squadron was inactivated on 31 December 1969 due to budget reductions. However, the radar site itself rejoined the SAGE network on 30 June 1971. The FAA operated an AN/FPS 65 search radar (which had replaced the AN/FPS 24), and the Air Force added an AN/FPS 90 height finder radar. This height finder radar later became an AN/FPS 116 for the Joint Surveillance System (JSS) Program, then was removed c. 1988. The Malmstrom AFB radar site was closed altogether in 1996, and after the air force shut down the ADCOM Z 147 site, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) took over operation as part of the Joint Surveillance System (JSS). Z 147 was completely replaced by a new ARSR 4 JSS site on Bootlegger Ridge, about 14 miles northeast of Great Falls AFB. Designated by NORAD as Western Air Defense Sector (WADS) Ground Equipment Facility J 77A. In 1959 a SAGE data center (DC 20) was established at Malmstrom. The SAGE system was a network linking Air Force (and later FAA) general surveillance radar stations into a centralized center for air defense, intended to provide early warning and response for a Soviet nuclear attack. DC 20 was initially under the Great Falls Air Defense Sector (GFADS), established on 1 March 1959. GFADS was inactivated on 1 April 1966, and re designated as the 28th Air Division. DC 20 with its AN/FSQ 7 computer remained under the 28th AD until it was inactivated on 19 November 1969 and being taken over by the 24th Air Division. DC 20 remained on duty until March 1983 when technology advances allowed the air force to shut down many SAGE data centers. The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) was created in 1957. Beginning in 1959, Malmstrom was the headquarters of the Great Falls Air Defense Sector, until inactivated in 1966. On 21 August 1954 the 407th SFW Vice Commander, Colonel Einar Axel Malmstrom, died when his T 33 Shooting Star trainer crashed approximately one mile west of the Great Falls Municipal Airport. Although his tenure was short, he was well liked by the local community. It was the local civilian community that led the efforts to rename Great Falls AFB for Col. Malmstrom. On 15 June 1956, the base was officially dedicated as Malmstrom Air Force Base. On 1 September 1991, the 341 SMW became the 341st Missile Wing. Also in 1991, the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START I), was officially formalized. President Bush took all Minuteman II missiles, bombers and tankers off alert status on 27 September. In November 1991, the 12th Missile Squadron's Launch Facility J 03 became the first to have its missile removed in compliance with the order. It would be three and one half years, until the last Minuteman II in the Air Force inventory was removed from Kilo 11 on 10 August 1995. As Minuteman II missiles were removed, a new program called Rivet Add was launched, modifying the 150 Minuteman II launch facilities to accommodate the newer Minuteman III, transferred from Grand Forks AFB in northeastern North Dakota. With the inactivation of SAC on 1 June 1992, Malmstrom temporarily became an Air Mobility Command (AMC) base with the 341st Missile Wing as an Air Combat Command (ACC) tenant unit. The 301 ARW was subsequently inactivated and replaced by the 43d Air Refueling Wing (43 ARW) as a KC 135R unit reporting to Fifteenth Air Force (15 AF), then located at March AFB, California. The 341 SMW was redesignated as the 341st Missile Wing (341 MW), reporting to ACC's Twentieth Air Force (20 AF) located at F. E. Warren Air Force Base at Cheyenne, Wyoming. Following an Air Force decision to divest ACC of all ICBM units and assets, the 341 MW was subsequently transferred to Air Force Space Command located at Peterson Air Force Base at Colorado Springs, Colorado. This mid 1993 move merged all missile and space operations under one command. In October 1997, the 341 MW, along with all other missile wings, was redesignated as the 341st Space Wing (341 SW). In 1994, the 43 ARW was downgraded in status and redesignated as the 43d Air Refueling Group (43 ARG). In 1996, the 43 ARG and its KC 135R aircraft were transferred from Malmstrom to MacDill AFB at Tampa, Florida, as part of a Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) action, merging with MacDill's 6th Air Base Wing to form the current 6th Air Refueling Wing. With the loss of its only fixed wing flying unit, Malmstrom's runway was decommissioned as a cost savings measure following departure of the last KC 135R aircraft in 1997. Malmstrom's air traffic control tower was leveled, the navigational aids were turned off and runway was closed and currently remains inactive. One hangar and a portion of the Malmstrom flight line remain operational for aviation purposes as heliport for Malmstrom's 40th Helicopter Squadron (40 HS) and its UH 1N Twin Huey helicopters supporting the 341st Space Wing's Minuteman III ICBM sites. On 18 May 2007 there was an incident involving the visiting Canadian Forces aerial demonstration squadron, the "Snowbirds". While practicing, a lap belt failed in one of the Snowbirds' aircraft, resulting in a mishap that killed the pilot of Snowbird 2. Malmstrom had been used for the site of an experimental coal to synthetic fuel plant for potential use in USAF aircraft in 2008. On 6 May 2008, NBC Today Show personality Al Roker broadcast live from Malmstrom AFB as part of an "Access Granted" series centered on places the American public doesn't get to see firsthand. Roker and his crew were permitted access to a missile silo and he interviewed various squadron members about the policies and procedures should a nuclear response ever be directed by the President of the United States. On 1 July 2008, the 341st Space Wing was redesignated as the 341st Missile Wing. Two launch facilities at the base showed PCB levels higher than the thresholds recommended by the Environmental Protection Agency when extensive sampling began of active U. S. intercontinental ballistic missile bases to address specific cancer concerns in 2023.

In 2014, dozens of missile launch officers lost their launch certifications after it was discovered that several officers were trading proficiency test answers amongst each other through text messages. An investigation began in 2013, when evidence of cheating was discovered during a drug investigation involving three launch officers. This resulted in over 90 nuclear launch officers being suspended from their duties and at least nine senior officers around the base were removed from command with a tenth resigning. Though some of the ten officers were not involved in the scandal, Deborah Lee James, the Secretary of the Air Force at the time, stated that they were removed for "not providing proper oversight amongst their crew force". Additional investigations were conducted at Minot Air Force Base and F. E. Warren Air Force Base to determine if the scandal had spread to other bases. No evidence of cheating was discovered at either base.

Malmstrom AFB is one of three US Air Force Bases that maintains and operates the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile. The 341st Missile Wing reports directly to Twentieth Air Force at F. E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming. It is part of Global Strike Command headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The base's runway was closed on 31 December 1996 to aircraft operations. Helicopter operations at Malmstrom continue in support of the base's missile mission. Units marked GSU are Geographically Separate Units, which although based at Malmstrom, are subordinate to a parent unit based at another location.

The Malmstrom Museum exhibits 7 aircraft as well as artifacts related to the history of the airbase.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the base CDP has a total area of 5.2 square miles (13 km2), all land.

As of the 2000 census, the base had a total population of 4,544. It is part of the "Great Falls, Montana Metropolitan Statistical Area". As of the census of 2000, there were 4,544 people, 1,310 households, and 1,151 families residing on the base. The population density was 879.9 inhabitants per square mile (340.0/km2). There were 1,405 housing units at an average density of 272.1 per square mile (105.1/km2). The racial makeup of the base is 83.2% European American, 6.6% African American, 0.6% Native American, 2.3% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 3.3% from other races, and 3.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 7.8% of the population. There were 1,310 households, out of which 66.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 82.0% were married couples living together, 4.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 12.1% were non families. 10.7% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 3.16 and the average family size was 3.41. On the base the population was spread out, with 36.8% under the age of 18, 23.2% from 18 to 24, 38.1% from 25 to 44, 1.8% from 45 to 64, and 0.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 22 years. For every 100 females, there were 118.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 125.3 males. The median income for a household on the base was $31,775, and the median income for a family was $33,125. Males had a median income of $24,009 versus $19,393 for females. The per capita income for the base was $11,450. About 4.9% of families and 6.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.0% of those under the age of 18 and none of those 65 and older.