Ellsworth AFB Missile Security Squadron History
BACKGROUND HISTORY ON
ELLSWORTH AFB’S FORMER ICBM SECURITY TEAMS
© 2017 by Bret S. Whitmore, former TSgt, USAF,
45th MSS Veteran (‘82-‘85); 28th Bomb Wing Historian, (’85-’86 & ’93-’96).
821ST Security Police Squadron (821 SPS), (previously designated as the 821st Combat Defense Squadron) a Strategic Air Command (SAC) unit; subordinate element of the 821st Aerospace Division activated on Ellsworth AFB, SD in early 1962. Designated and activated in support of base security, law enforcement (garrison), and weapons system security for both the assigned 28th Bombardment Wing (H) (including its assigned priority aircraft and weapons storage area assets), as well as the new Titan I Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) launch facilities originally remotely emplaced near rural Hermosa, Wicksville, and Sturgis, SD. This unit was also responsible for early security of the newest portions of Ellsworth’s Minuteman I ICBM complex as soon as Boeing contractors had completed facility construction and the initial squadrons went
operational. (Additional research/information pending.)
ELLSWORTH AFB’S FORMER ICBM SECURITY TEAMS
© 2017 by Bret S. Whitmore, former TSgt, USAF,
45th MSS Veteran (‘82-‘85); 28th Bomb Wing Historian, (’85-’86 & ’93-’96).
821ST Security Police Squadron (821 SPS), (previously designated as the 821st Combat Defense Squadron) a Strategic Air Command (SAC) unit; subordinate element of the 821st Aerospace Division activated on Ellsworth AFB, SD in early 1962. Designated and activated in support of base security, law enforcement (garrison), and weapons system security for both the assigned 28th Bombardment Wing (H) (including its assigned priority aircraft and weapons storage area assets), as well as the new Titan I Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) launch facilities originally remotely emplaced near rural Hermosa, Wicksville, and Sturgis, SD. This unit was also responsible for early security of the newest portions of Ellsworth’s Minuteman I ICBM complex as soon as Boeing contractors had completed facility construction and the initial squadrons went
operational. (Additional research/information pending.)
Official Emblem
44th Missile Security Squadron
(44th MSS), (later, temporarily redesignated the 812th Missile Security Squadron (812th MSS).
A Strategic Air Command (SAC) unit; subordinate element of the 44th Security Police Group (44th SPG), assigned to the 44th Strategic Missile Wing (44th SMW) at Ellsworth AFB, SD; an integral part of the Wing II tasking of the SAC (Minuteman) ICBM force.
Activated: 1 Oct 1973; designated and activated as an independent unit, comprised of the field and missile support branches of the former 821st Security Police Squadron, a larger predecessor unit that had been in existence on Ellsworth AFB since the activation of the 821st Aerospace Division there (early 1962), during the initial days of the Titan I missile program.
Function: Initially assumed all USAF Security Police functions required to insure full Nuclear Surety compliance with SAC Regulation 207-16 ‘System Security Standard - LGM-30’ in the 44th SMW. Later, due to unit size and supervisory requirements, the 44th MSS turned over Missile Support branch functions to the newer 45th Missile Security Squadron. Primarily responsible for providing dedicated on-site security personnel for the 15 Minuteman missile Launch Control Facilities (LCFs) comprising the 66th, 67th, and 68th Strategic Missile Squadrons (66th, 67th, 68th SMS) of the 44th SMW. The 44th MSS staffed all Flight Security Controllers (FSCs), all two-person Alarm Response Teams (ARTs), and all three-person Security Response Teams (SRTs) [consisting of the relief shift FSC and ART], as well as field flight supervisory personnel.
(44th MSS), (later, temporarily redesignated the 812th Missile Security Squadron (812th MSS).
A Strategic Air Command (SAC) unit; subordinate element of the 44th Security Police Group (44th SPG), assigned to the 44th Strategic Missile Wing (44th SMW) at Ellsworth AFB, SD; an integral part of the Wing II tasking of the SAC (Minuteman) ICBM force.
Activated: 1 Oct 1973; designated and activated as an independent unit, comprised of the field and missile support branches of the former 821st Security Police Squadron, a larger predecessor unit that had been in existence on Ellsworth AFB since the activation of the 821st Aerospace Division there (early 1962), during the initial days of the Titan I missile program.
Function: Initially assumed all USAF Security Police functions required to insure full Nuclear Surety compliance with SAC Regulation 207-16 ‘System Security Standard - LGM-30’ in the 44th SMW. Later, due to unit size and supervisory requirements, the 44th MSS turned over Missile Support branch functions to the newer 45th Missile Security Squadron. Primarily responsible for providing dedicated on-site security personnel for the 15 Minuteman missile Launch Control Facilities (LCFs) comprising the 66th, 67th, and 68th Strategic Missile Squadrons (66th, 67th, 68th SMS) of the 44th SMW. The 44th MSS staffed all Flight Security Controllers (FSCs), all two-person Alarm Response Teams (ARTs), and all three-person Security Response Teams (SRTs) [consisting of the relief shift FSC and ART], as well as field flight supervisory personnel.
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Official Emblem Unofficial Emblem
(One of several variations; universal favorite)
(One of several variations; universal favorite)
45th Missile Security Squadron
(45th MSS), (later, temporarily redesignated the 813th Missile Security Squadron (813th MSS).
A Strategic Air Command (SAC) unit; subordinate element of the 44th Security Police Group (44th SPG), assigned to the 44th Strategic Missile Wing (44th SMW) at Ellsworth AFB, SD; an integral part of the Wing II tasking of the SAC (Minuteman) ICBM force.
Activated: 1 Nov 1977; designated and activated as an independent unit which, due to similar size and supervisory requirements experienced by its predecessor squadron, assumed the myriad functions of the 44th MSS’s former Missile Support Branch.
Function: Shared USAF Security Police responsibilities required to insure full Nuclear Surety compliance with SAC Regulation 207-16 ‘System Security Standard - LGM-30’ in the 44th SMW. Provided dedicated missile security support functions on base and escort/patrol functions between the base and the 150 Launch Facilities (LFs) comprising the 66th, 67th, and 68th SMS. Base functions included staffing Wing Security Control (WSC), the Keys and Codes Control Center (KCCC), Scheduling & Dispatch, and the 45th MSS Vehicle Section. Field functions provided all Security Escort Teams (SETs), Camper Alert Teams (CATs), Mobile Fire Teams (MFTs), and Airborne Fire Teams (AFTs) (the latter used only during Category I convoys) for the 44th SMW’s Minuteman force. A partly-garrisoned unit, the 45th MSS provided mobile patrol, nuclear systems security, and SAC Two-Man-Policy enforcement and support for maintenance teams conducting routine or as-needed maintenance in the field, as well as security coverage for clusters of LFs undergoing maintenance at the same time, or whose electronic intrusion detection systems were experiencing problems. The squadron was responsible for its own small fleet of Cadillac Gage ‘Ranger’ five-ton armored patrol/escort vehicles (known in USAF parlance as ‘Peacekeepers’), ‘six-pack’ pickups with commercial camper shells mounted in their beds as longer-duration field security vehicles, and other multi-passenger vehicles for command functions and convoy support.
Just as Wing Security Control was the nerve center for all security operations conducted by both the 44th and 45th Missile Security Squadrons, the 45th MSS Scheduling & Dispatch office was the nerve center for the squadron itself. It tracked all assigned personnel, monitored their accumulated duty hours, posted, stand-by and crew rest schedules, coordinated daily with the 44th SMW’s maintenance deputate to provide security escorts for maintenance trips to the field, assigned CATs to provide physical security for certain sites awaiting maintenance, and scheduled MFTs to provide roving security coverage for a variety of SAC systems security requirements. Like the 44th MSS, the 45th MSS also provided field security supervisory personnel to monitor their troops in the field.
(45th MSS), (later, temporarily redesignated the 813th Missile Security Squadron (813th MSS).
A Strategic Air Command (SAC) unit; subordinate element of the 44th Security Police Group (44th SPG), assigned to the 44th Strategic Missile Wing (44th SMW) at Ellsworth AFB, SD; an integral part of the Wing II tasking of the SAC (Minuteman) ICBM force.
Activated: 1 Nov 1977; designated and activated as an independent unit which, due to similar size and supervisory requirements experienced by its predecessor squadron, assumed the myriad functions of the 44th MSS’s former Missile Support Branch.
Function: Shared USAF Security Police responsibilities required to insure full Nuclear Surety compliance with SAC Regulation 207-16 ‘System Security Standard - LGM-30’ in the 44th SMW. Provided dedicated missile security support functions on base and escort/patrol functions between the base and the 150 Launch Facilities (LFs) comprising the 66th, 67th, and 68th SMS. Base functions included staffing Wing Security Control (WSC), the Keys and Codes Control Center (KCCC), Scheduling & Dispatch, and the 45th MSS Vehicle Section. Field functions provided all Security Escort Teams (SETs), Camper Alert Teams (CATs), Mobile Fire Teams (MFTs), and Airborne Fire Teams (AFTs) (the latter used only during Category I convoys) for the 44th SMW’s Minuteman force. A partly-garrisoned unit, the 45th MSS provided mobile patrol, nuclear systems security, and SAC Two-Man-Policy enforcement and support for maintenance teams conducting routine or as-needed maintenance in the field, as well as security coverage for clusters of LFs undergoing maintenance at the same time, or whose electronic intrusion detection systems were experiencing problems. The squadron was responsible for its own small fleet of Cadillac Gage ‘Ranger’ five-ton armored patrol/escort vehicles (known in USAF parlance as ‘Peacekeepers’), ‘six-pack’ pickups with commercial camper shells mounted in their beds as longer-duration field security vehicles, and other multi-passenger vehicles for command functions and convoy support.
Just as Wing Security Control was the nerve center for all security operations conducted by both the 44th and 45th Missile Security Squadrons, the 45th MSS Scheduling & Dispatch office was the nerve center for the squadron itself. It tracked all assigned personnel, monitored their accumulated duty hours, posted, stand-by and crew rest schedules, coordinated daily with the 44th SMW’s maintenance deputate to provide security escorts for maintenance trips to the field, assigned CATs to provide physical security for certain sites awaiting maintenance, and scheduled MFTs to provide roving security coverage for a variety of SAC systems security requirements. Like the 44th MSS, the 45th MSS also provided field security supervisory personnel to monitor their troops in the field.
Ellsworth AFB Security Police (ICBM Security) Cold War Casualties:
SSgt Terry L. Wright, 821st SPS (9 Oct 1971)
Sgt Glen G. Wilson, 821st SPS (9 Oct 1971)
Sgt David H. Cloe, 821st SPS (9 Oct 1971)
Sgt Bernard N. Blakes, 821st SPS (9 Oct 1971)
A1C Larry D. Hughes, 821st SPS (9 Oct 1971)
Amn Johnny R. Brock, 821st SPS (9 Oct 1971)
[All of the above died in-the-line-of-duty in a Det 2, 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron UH-1 helicopter crash 11 miles north of Wall, SD, near the entrance to Minuteman LCF C-1.]
Staff Sergeant Charles L. Huskey, 45th MSS (29 May 1986)
Senior Airman Donald H. Heitkamp, 45th MSS (29 May 1986)
Airman Barry P. Holmes, 45th MSS (29 May 1986)
[All of the above died in-the-line-of-duty in a Det 2, 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron UH-1 helicopter crash near Bear Butte, South Dakota, while performing Airborne Fire Team duties during a Category I Minuteman convoy.]
Airman Daniel Joseph Kopp, 45th MSS (08 Mar 1983)
[Died in-the-line-of-duty as the result of an accidental weapons discharge on Minuteman II LF Juliet 6, part of the 67th SMS, near Faith, South Dakota.]
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45TH MSS End-of-Watch
(Deceased 45th MSS Members, post-USAF)
Jacob Joseph Chestnut (28 Apr 1940 - 24 Jul 1998) Chestnut was one of the founding members of the 45th Missile Security Squadron at its activation in 1977. During his post-USAF years, while serving as a guard on the U.S. Capitol Security Detail, Chestnut was murdered in-the-line-of-duty by gunman Russell Eugene Weston, Jr. Chestnut was also the first African-American honored to lie in state inside the U.S. Capitol building.
Sgt Todd E. Friedlein (03 January 1966 - 08 October 2003) Served in the 45th MSS prior to 1986.
SSgt Joseph Frederick Golden (09 Aug 1956 - 03 Feb 2007) Served in the 45th MSS in the early 1980s.
Sgt Emerson Leo Hollow Horn (06 January 1960 - 03 April 2012) Served in the 45th MSS in the early 1980s.
Reno Earl Donovan Reed (29 Aug 1966 - 20 Apr 2015) Served in the 45th MSS in the 1990s.
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Illustration Credits: 821st Combat Defense Squadron patch photo, USAF Police Alumni Association “Deactivated Units” page:http://www.usafpolice.org/deactivated-units.html; 44th MSS wall-sized emblem on display in South Dakota Air & Space Museum, Ellsworth AFB, SD (photo by author); Digitally-enhanced 45th MSS Official emblem (by author); Digital illustration of 45th MSS “T-Rex”, provided by and used with permission of Doug Marek, Veteran, 45th MSS.
Sources: “45th Missile Security is newest squadron,” Plainsman, Vol II, No. 44, Rapid City, SD, Nov 3, 1977, p 1; 44th Commemorative Committee, Aggressor Beware, A Brief History of the 44th Missile Wing, 1962-1994, Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota: Grelind Printing, 1993; Chronological posting, Bret S. Whitmore, former TSgt, USAF, 28th BW/HO, UH-1F Ellsworth AFB, SD 09 October 1971, www.rotorheadsrus.us/documents/uh_1f_ellisworth_afb_1971.html; Pamphlet, MSgt Robert Atchison, Mrs. Rita LaBelle, and Mrs. Robin Mazur, Ellsworth AFB Memorials and Dedications, 28th Bomb Wing History Office, ca 1998; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Capitol_shooting_incident_(1998); Genealogical Research Site: http://findagrave.com.
(Latest update: 12 Mar 2017.)
SSgt Terry L. Wright, 821st SPS (9 Oct 1971)
Sgt Glen G. Wilson, 821st SPS (9 Oct 1971)
Sgt David H. Cloe, 821st SPS (9 Oct 1971)
Sgt Bernard N. Blakes, 821st SPS (9 Oct 1971)
A1C Larry D. Hughes, 821st SPS (9 Oct 1971)
Amn Johnny R. Brock, 821st SPS (9 Oct 1971)
[All of the above died in-the-line-of-duty in a Det 2, 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron UH-1 helicopter crash 11 miles north of Wall, SD, near the entrance to Minuteman LCF C-1.]
Staff Sergeant Charles L. Huskey, 45th MSS (29 May 1986)
Senior Airman Donald H. Heitkamp, 45th MSS (29 May 1986)
Airman Barry P. Holmes, 45th MSS (29 May 1986)
[All of the above died in-the-line-of-duty in a Det 2, 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron UH-1 helicopter crash near Bear Butte, South Dakota, while performing Airborne Fire Team duties during a Category I Minuteman convoy.]
Airman Daniel Joseph Kopp, 45th MSS (08 Mar 1983)
[Died in-the-line-of-duty as the result of an accidental weapons discharge on Minuteman II LF Juliet 6, part of the 67th SMS, near Faith, South Dakota.]
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45TH MSS End-of-Watch
(Deceased 45th MSS Members, post-USAF)
Jacob Joseph Chestnut (28 Apr 1940 - 24 Jul 1998) Chestnut was one of the founding members of the 45th Missile Security Squadron at its activation in 1977. During his post-USAF years, while serving as a guard on the U.S. Capitol Security Detail, Chestnut was murdered in-the-line-of-duty by gunman Russell Eugene Weston, Jr. Chestnut was also the first African-American honored to lie in state inside the U.S. Capitol building.
Sgt Todd E. Friedlein (03 January 1966 - 08 October 2003) Served in the 45th MSS prior to 1986.
SSgt Joseph Frederick Golden (09 Aug 1956 - 03 Feb 2007) Served in the 45th MSS in the early 1980s.
Sgt Emerson Leo Hollow Horn (06 January 1960 - 03 April 2012) Served in the 45th MSS in the early 1980s.
Reno Earl Donovan Reed (29 Aug 1966 - 20 Apr 2015) Served in the 45th MSS in the 1990s.
____________
Illustration Credits: 821st Combat Defense Squadron patch photo, USAF Police Alumni Association “Deactivated Units” page:http://www.usafpolice.org/deactivated-units.html; 44th MSS wall-sized emblem on display in South Dakota Air & Space Museum, Ellsworth AFB, SD (photo by author); Digitally-enhanced 45th MSS Official emblem (by author); Digital illustration of 45th MSS “T-Rex”, provided by and used with permission of Doug Marek, Veteran, 45th MSS.
Sources: “45th Missile Security is newest squadron,” Plainsman, Vol II, No. 44, Rapid City, SD, Nov 3, 1977, p 1; 44th Commemorative Committee, Aggressor Beware, A Brief History of the 44th Missile Wing, 1962-1994, Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota: Grelind Printing, 1993; Chronological posting, Bret S. Whitmore, former TSgt, USAF, 28th BW/HO, UH-1F Ellsworth AFB, SD 09 October 1971, www.rotorheadsrus.us/documents/uh_1f_ellisworth_afb_1971.html; Pamphlet, MSgt Robert Atchison, Mrs. Rita LaBelle, and Mrs. Robin Mazur, Ellsworth AFB Memorials and Dedications, 28th Bomb Wing History Office, ca 1998; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Capitol_shooting_incident_(1998); Genealogical Research Site: http://findagrave.com.
(Latest update: 12 Mar 2017.)
