HISTORY OF HlLL AIR FORCE BASE

HISTORY OFFICE OGBEN AIR LOGISTICS CENTER HlLL AIR FORCE BASE, UTAH

AIR FORCE LOGISTICS COMMAND

Clean Room, Hill AFB.

103 provided OOAMA with its first Clean Room. Funds for a Minuteman maintenance facility Begun 4 January 1961, these alterations cost had not been released in 1960; however, 1961 $284,787. Here, missile and aircraft electrical brought a different result as Congress released assemblies, hydraulic actuators, precision instrufunds for a huge new project. On 21 July 1961, ments, electronic mechanical devices, and other construction began on a Missile Assembly and aerospace ground equipment (used on MinuteMaintenance Shops (MAMS) facility. Initially man, Bomarc, F-101, F-4C) were calibrated, tested costing $2,225,115.40, subsequent changes raised and repaired. the total cost to $2,307,708.90. OOAMA workers Meanwhile, the technology of the Minuteman would use this facility to recycle (disassemble, Missile System necessitated the cno-f o-io overhaul, inspect, check out, and reassemble) all otXEFGFw&d unique facilities, and modification Minuteman missiles. The initial construction inof others, including 14 am cluded five new concrete and steel buildings for construction of seven pits disassembly and reassembly, the modification of Motor surveillance *'Facility *'*co~1,e:~~~.Completed ammunition igloos for storage of the motors, and . . *-durKgSptkmber 1961 a t a cost of $422,717, the modification of two Hill AFB East Area buildings complex served a s an aging laboratory, wherein for missile component repair. The first MAMS temperature and humidity controlled conditions facility was completed 13 March 1962. The resimulated the environment of Minuteman harmaining four were finished during August 1962, dened silos to determine the effect of long-time along with the modification of 12 ammunition storage on the solid fuel motors. To increase its igloos. Also finished were alterations to two bays capabilities, special concrete loading pads and in Building 103 and the south bay of Building 510 ramps were built for the Minuteman storage igloos for Clean Rooms. The first building (number 980) at a cost of $28,000 and four igloos were modified in the MAMS complex became operational, capto simulate extreme arctic and tropic conditions a t able of testing Minuteman Wing I configured misa cost of $335,000. siles, on 13 August 1962. Beginning 1 August,
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technicians conducted integration and compatibility tests using the installed missile checkout equipment to insure facility readiness to handle the Minuteman. By the end of 1962, three more buildings (975, 970, and 965) became fully operational. The remaining one, Building 960 was to be modified to accommodate the installation of advanced test equipment. Upon becoming operational on 8 April 1963, Building 960 provided OOAMA with the capability to perform maintenance work on Minuteman Wings I1 through V equipment. On 14 September 1962, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers turned over the entire missile maintenance facility, which cost $2,331,177.46.At this point, it included five MAMS buildings, two Clean Rooms, and 12 ammunition igloos. The entire facility could process five Minuteman missiles at one time. Modification of Building 215, completed on 26 February 1963, provided a Standard Calibration Laboratory for Minuteman and other U.S. missile work. Started in May 1962, the total project costs were $196,942. The Air Force received additional funds for re-

novation of a second group of MAMS buildings and modification of storage igloos to include temperature controls, on 3 October 1962. Eighteen months later, the $1,222,850 contract was completed modifying MAMS Buildings 935, 940, 945, 950, plus additional igloos and a heating plant in Building 1310. By 14 May 1964, the last of the second group of MAMs buildings (Number 935) became operational. This gave OOAMA's maintenance complex nine operational MAMS buildings. Each was unique in the USAF. Another significant project associated with Minuteman maintenance developed during the early sixties. In February 1961, HQ Air Materiel Command (AMC) announced plans for the first Radiographic Laboratory to be constructed a t Hill AFB, Utah. The final drawings, specifications, design analysis, and cost estimate for this structure were finished in January 1962, and construction began on 5 April 1962. When completed, facilities and equipment made it possible for OOAMA to detect structural and other defects in missile motors and components by X-raying them. The contractor finished this $313,650 structure on 10

Radiographic Laboratories one and two. Background, right, MAMS Buildings; left, AF plant TI, ammunition igloos.
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An industrial radiologist at Hill AFB adiusts a linear accelerator betore X-raying a Minuteman missile tor detection ot cracks and voids in the propellant.

January 1963, and by the middle of the following month, technicians had the 24-million-electronvolt (MEW linear accelerator (Linac) X-ray machine installed and operating. During July, this first radiographic laboratory became fully operational with the installation of all of the equipment items. The $323,532 Linac X-ray machine allowed technicians of the 2705th Airmunitions Wing to X-ray and detect flaws in the Minuteman as well as other solid-propellant rocket motors in 21 hours, instead of the 316 hours required using the smaller X-ray units. Before construction on the initial laboratory was completed, HQ Air Force Logistics Command (AFLC)which formerly was designated Air Materiel Command, received a final package of specifications for an additional Radiographic Laboratory a t Hill AFB. Ground-breaking ceremonies took place 25 March 1963, for the 5,735-square-foot addition. In order to equip the laboratory, the Air Force released $367,000 for a second 24 MEV Linac. Construction ended on 15 April 1964. As was the case with the MAMS facilities, OOAMA's two Guided Missile Radiographic Laboratories were unique in the Air Force. An additional X-ray apparatus arrived a t

Hill in 1963. On 8 April, military personnel a t Eglin AFB, Florida, disassembled a 10 MEV Linac for shipment to Hill AFB. It had been used by the Douglas Aircraft Co., in the research and development program for the Skybolt missile. Declared surplus, the Linac was acquired by OOAMA for use in its missile-airmunitions work. Hill AFB engineering personnel modified Building 2113 to house the Linac. On 1November 1963, technicians completed installation of the machine giving the 2705th Airmunitions Wing additional capability for solid-propellant booster inspection. To protect the important Minuteman missiles during loading and unloading operations a t Hill AFB, OOAMA obtained prefabricated Thor Missile Shelters. It received its first such shelter on 26 December 1962 from Douglas Aircraft's test facility near Sacramento. These shelters were surplus with the cancellation of the Thor Program in Great Britain. On 15 February 1963, Maintenance and Civil Engineering made the first Thor structure operational. It was installed a t the loading and unloading "Hot Pad Number 1," to ~rovide protection during the two-hour process of placing a Minuteman in or out of C-133B transport aircraft. Other shelters would be used in conjunction with

the loading operations a t the Air Freight Terminal, MAMS buildings, and igloos a t Hill AFB. Another new frontier began during 1964, when the USAF Strategic Panel approved the construction of a Minuteman Engineering Test Facility a t Hill AFB. Plans for the facility included an operationally configured Wing V launch facility; a soft, above-ground, non-operationally configured building to house the Launch Control Center (LCC) equipment; cabling needed to connect the launch facility and its support building with the Launch Control Center; and a component processing building with an environmentally controlled room for housing test equipment for detailed fault analysis. In preparation for the construction of this facility, HQ AFLC directed OOAMA to accept an accountability transfer of the following facilities from Air Force Plant 77: Buildings 1264,1268, 1278,1287,1288,1298 and the land in base zones 1300 and 1400. During February 1965 OOAMA assumed responsibility for maintenance, security, fire protection, and the safety of property to be used as part of the new Minuteman Engineering Test Facility complex. Involved in the transfer of accountability were 49 acres of land for the facility. On 19 February 1965, officials conducted ground-breaking ceremonies for the $1,294,800 complex. Instrumentation hardware and inert missile and other associated weapon system hardware brought the total cost to several million dollars. On 19 January 1966, officials dedicated the $12.5 million Minuteman Missile Engineering Test Facility a t Hill AFB. It was the first and only complete system engineering test facility for an

operational missile in the inventory. At the ceremony, the Ballistic Systems Division (BSD)of Air Force Systems Command (AFSC) transferred the facility to OOAMA for operation. A year and a half later, on 19 June 1967, ground was broken for a $16.5 million Minuteman I1 Engineering Test facility. This second such facility a t Hill AFB was dedicated on 31 January 1969. It consisted of an operational launch silo, an aboveground launch control facility, an instrumentation complex, and guidance test stations. This complex was built to increase the reliability and operational effectiveness of the Minuteman I1 missile. In May 1967, construction of a Minuteman missile loading dock began on Arizona Street, north of Building 960. Similar to the one a t the Boeing Plant 77, this loading dock was finished on 19July 1967, a t a cost of approximately $7,000. One other notable Minuteman facility was under construction during the late sixties. On 9 December 1968, officials held ground-breaking ceremonies for a new reentry system maintenance and repair building. The $535,000 facility served as a specialized repair building for the LGM-30 Post Boost Propulsion System upon completion in early 1970. During this decade, OOAMA also provided support for the Athena Missile Launch Program a t Green River, Utah. During September 1963, the Ballistic Systems Division forwarded an obligation authority for $11,000 to modify t h r e e ammunition igloos a t Hill and purchase handling equipment in support of an Athena rocket motor storage project. Two ammunition igloos for stor-

Thor shelter and C-133B Cargomaster.

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July. The one for Vandenberg arrived the following day. On 25 July 1962, the Directorate of Maintenance received a ground test, disassembled configuration of a Minuteman missile (077) from Air Force Plant 77 for the first Missile Assembly and Maintenance Shop (MAMS) building. The missile included the three motor stages, but with inert propellant, a research and development configuration of the autonavigator, or guidance system, and a simulated model of the reentry vehicle. This was the first such missile received to serve as an onthe-job check and test vehicle for technicians to attain Minuteman proficiency for future maintenance. Meanwhile, on 9 April 1962, OOAMA and the Western Air Transport Air Force (WESTAF)of the Military Air Transport Service agreed upon airlift support to be provided Minuteman missiles to and from Hill AFB by the 1501st Air Transport Wing C-133B aircraft. In addition, on 1 August, the 733rd Troop Carrier Squadron, a tenant a t Hill AFB agreed to provide airlift on a nonscheduled basis in support of the Minuteman site activations. Squadron services were furnished without reimbursement. Logistics Airlift (LOGAIR) commercial air transportation was also used as necessary. On 22 August 1962, OOAMA set up a Minuteman Transportation Equipment Control Center. A directive published this date showed the procedures for its operation and assigned responsibilities to the SSM, IM, and Directorate of Maintenance to support the center. It maintained complete configuration, location, and status data on all pipeline transport and material handling equipment, and controlled the movement of it be-

tween associate contractor facilities and Air Force Plant 77; between Air Force Plant 77 and OOAMA, and assembly and checkout contractors, launch sites, strategic missile support bases, and training sites; between operational launch sites, or training sites and the SRA; or between SRAs. This applied during production, assembly checkout and operational phases of the Minuteman program. The first air shipment of a Minuteman from Hill AFB to a launching site occurred on 17 November 1962. Removed from Air Force Plant 77, the missile was delivered to the flight line a t Hill AFB, and loaded aboard a C-133B Cargomaster. Sealed in the specially designed shipping and storage container that was 52 feet long, eight feet four inches high, and over four tons in weight, the Minuteman was delivered to Malmstrom AFB, Montana, where it was transferred to a transporter-erector vehicle and lowered into the launching silo. Its deterrent capability quickly became an established fact. Maintenance received its first operationally configured Minuteman missile (Number 63-016) from Malmstrom AFB on 21 November 1962. Technicians disassembled it, checked the component parts, reassembled it, and performed a functional checkout. On 7 January 1963, inspectors officially accepted this missile as operationally ready and placed it into igloo storage. By 15 February 1963 technicians had disassembled it, installed a new second-stage motor, and reassembled it for certification once again. Twelve days later Maintenance turned the missile over to supply for reshipment to Malmstrom AFB. The Directorate of Maintenance received its

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Boeing Air Force Plant 77 first production Minuteman missile.

First rail shipment of a Minuteman from Hill AFB. The missile was inside its transporter-erector.

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second Minuteman missile (No. 63-004) in February and returned it by May. On 27 May 1963, Supply's Surface Terminal Branch prepared this missile for rail shipment to Vandenberg AFB, California. Special blocking, bracing, securing and inspecting by the Shipping Section and Surface Terminal Inspectors made it possible for the missile to arrive 31 May. SAC test fired the missile on 5 July 1963. This 11th launch from Vandenberg AFB furnished data for evaluating missile subsystems and validating improvements in components of the operational missile. All the while, the Directorate of Maintenance's Minuteman capabilities continued to improve. On 20 February 1963, its missile technicians attained the capability to handle second-stage motors, primarily nozzle removal and replacement, in the Minuteman maintenance facility. Maintenance technicians successfully test fired the second stage motor a t Aerojet-General Corp., facilities in California in preparation for the work. The Wasatch-..-, Division of Thiokol Chemical&. * poration, successfully static test fired asfirs$-stage . -. Minuteman missilemotor, after itshad:beef! ,s;ta~g(], in Hill's A g i n z Z ~ 6 6 r Z f o 27 konths, "on 27 f&" n Fe%"a& 1963:tInthe l~borit;S?jl";'under controlled temperature and humidity conditions similar to those of a launching silo, motors were checked by the 2705th Airmunitions Wing. Following storage, the motor was subjected to a 3,000-mile road test and a prefiring inspection which showed no adverse effects from the road test. Three firststage motors had previously been successfully static test fired after storage in Hill's laboratory for 20,15, and 20 months respectively. On 19 August 1963, Thiokol successfully static test fired a first*---"~-rscr*^l"l"L.
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stage Minuteman motor after it had been in storage for a record 32 months. On 5 January 1963, OOAMA established a uniform system for submitting and processing detailed information concerning equipment, production, and delivery problems when Minuteman Production Board assistance was required. The board was located at the Boeing Company Plant in Seattle, Washington to consider the resolution of these and other problems coming from Air Force agencies and contractors. OOAMA's Minuteman SSM Division furnished a representative to meet with the board, which served as the central point for assistance requests. To provide uniform procedures for rapid movement of the Minuteman missile critical items through the repair cycle and back to the using command, Supply and Materiel Management officials signed a Memorandum of Agreement covering "Hot Shot Service for Minuteman Repair and Return Items" in April 1963. Procedures covered the processing of IM Prime Items and System Support Manager Items repaired and returned from Materiel Repair Schedules. Operators developed special identification labels to be attached to documents, material, and containers. Contact points throughout the repair cycle were established to obviate delays. An OOAMA 67-series regulation incorporated the procedure. The first SM-80 Minuteman OOAMAIBoeing Management Meeting under OOAMA chairmanship was held a t Hill AFB on 24 April 1963. Equipment phasing, production schedules, capabilities, and related logistics matters were discussed. The objectives of the meetings, were to bring the Air Force and contractors together to enable

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First shipment of Minuteman by C-133B aircraft, destination Malmstrom AFB.

mutual understanding of Minuteman logistic support functions, identify problem areas, assign responsible agencies to effect timely solutions, and ensure the proper integration of Air Force and contractors efforts including the development of time-phased schedules required for logistics support. T h e first rail shipment of a n LGM-30 Minuteman missile from Hill AFB to Minot AFB, North Dakota, occurred on 13 September 1963. Great Northern delivered it to Minot AFB in a Union Pacific railroad car on 17 September. Some missiles were also shipped by roadways. Supply obtained a multistage transport trailer on 25 July 1963 to be used between Aerojet-General Corp., Nimbus, California, and Air Force Plant 77. Use of the trailer in hauling Minuteman motors saved $778 each round trip. On 15 November 1963, A C-133B delivered the 500th Minuteman to be shipped from Hill to launch sites. The production-recycle missile went to Minot. The base got its last production missile, via a C-133B aircraft, on 19 February 1964. The Boeing missile off-loading operation averaged about two hours. During this time, the C-133B was serviced with 15,000 gallons of gas. The first Minuteman missile left Hill for Whiteman AFB, Missouri, on 14 January 1964. Ground time was about three hours. The first Minuteman shipped from Hill AFB by railroad to Whiteman AFB occurred t h e same day. Accompanied by two Maintenance personnel, the missile's transit time
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was about 40 hours. The immediate delivery of Minuteman missiles enabled the first Minuteman flight a t Whiteman AFB to become operational 28 February 1964. On 11March 1964, special ceremonies were conducted a t Air Force Plant 77, Hill AFB to mark Boeing's completion of its 500th Minuteman missile. The missile was shipped by Supply to Whiteman AFB. As of 1 5 March, 55 missiles had been delivered to Wing IV a t Whiteman. Fifty-three of them were delivered by C-133B aircraft and two by rail. Two missiles had been recycled by Boeing AF Plant 77 with no difficulties experienced. By 30 April 1964,Whiteman AFB had received a total of 125 missiles, six by rail and 119 by air. On this date also, B-Flight was inventoried and transferred to SAC. A-Flight transfer occurred nine days earlier. Finally, on 21 May 1964, Supply shipped the final production Minuteman missile to Whiteman AFB's Wing IV via a 1501st Air Transport Wing C-133B. Meanwhile, on 24 March 1964, Maintenance missile technicians conducted a successful test firing of a Wing 11, Aerojet-General second-stage Minuteman motor a t Sacramento, California. This, coupled with special training in the removal, repair, and installation of second-stage motor nozzles, gave OOAMA full capability for this work. ' Training conducted by Aerojet personnel, in ' Building 2114, Hill AFB's solid rocket motor

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naintenance facility, began 27 January 1964, and ended in early March. On 1 April 1964, OOAMA began recycling the first of 22 LGM-30B Minuteman missiles. This involved accomplishing necessary second-stage nozzle modifications. In coordination with SAC, BSD, and affected OOAMA agencies, a schedule of about two per week was established for the adjustments. In other Minuteman support, the first movement of LGM-30 Minuteman production rocket motors by tandem haul from Aerojet-General Corp., to AF Plant 77 took place. A short time later, on 8 June 1964, the first Minuteman missile destined for Wing V, Francis E. Warren AFB, Wyoming left Hill AFB on a Union Pacific railroad car. It arrived the following day. Minuteman maintenance capabilities continued to improve. On 26 June 1964, OOAMA technicians completed validationlverification begun 9 March 1964 by Thiokol Chemical Corp., in Hill's solid rocket motor maintenance facility. This training included compliance with technical orders and verification of tools required to remove, repair and install nozzles in Stage I, Wing I1 Minuteman missiles. A successful firing at Thiokol's Wasatch Division on 26 June validated both tools and personnel skills and gave OOAMA full capability to repair Stage I, Wing I1 nozzles. The first Minuteman inert second-stage motor was transported 11June 1964 from Hill AFB to the Hill Air Force Range, Lakeside, Utah, where it

was used for training purposes and for checking interface of equipment facilities. On 16July 1964, the OOAMA Directorate of Supply and Transportation handled t h e rail shipment of two Minuteman missiles from AF Plant 77 to Francis E. Warren AFB. Later, on 10 November 1964, Supply's Missile Transportation Equipment Control Center received its first Wing VI Modified Multistage Transporter from the Thiokol Chemical Corp. A test using a second-stage surveillance motor was conducted 12-13 November 1964 in Building 2114 by the 2705th Airmunitions Wing, Thiokol, and Aerojet-General Corp. The first Wing VI Minuteman Ground Test missile destined for Vandenberg AFB left Hill AFB on 16 December 1964. This event verified procedures for airlifting the new Wing VI configured missile. On 25 May 1965, Boeing's Plant 77 completed its last Minuteman I, number 1,413. A ceremony was conducted in Missile Assembly Building 2401, a t which time the Air Force accepted the missile which went to Francis E. Warren AFB's, Wing V. This was not the end, however. On 1August 1965, the first Advanced Minuteman I1 missile came off the Boeing Plant 77 production line for shipment to Wing VI, Grand Forks AFB, North Dakota. On 26 April 1966, a specially configured C-141 delivered the first Minuteman I1 missile to Wing VI a t Grand Forks. The airlift was part of a series of tests conducted by the Military Airlift Command (MAC) to determine C-141 capabilities. About two months later, on 25 June 1966, 20

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Minuteman rocket motor repalr In a missile assembly and maintenance shop of Hill's missile facility ~ 0 m p k x .

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OOAMA Motor Repair Maintenance Shop personnel completed special training conducted by the Aerojet-General Corp., of Sacramento, California. The entrance of Wing VI configured Minuteman missiles into the LGM-30 fleet had created a requirement for a new stage-two motor which, in turn, necessitated the training. Training began 13 September 1965. Static firing in November 1966 verified the procedures, equipment, 'iifid"@lSA**--& i r r i n g w w " s . , -~ z~nfi-;;;"c--;l;";.-l'' * firifig gave OOAGA 'a-stsrge:tPifo,.',Wing VI motor,-. --*- * organic capability.. On 14 July 1976, OOAMA received the first Goodyear missile transporter for Minuteman Missile Wing VI force modernization transportability requirements. These transporters, manufactured by the Goodyear Aerospace Company of Litchfield Park, Arizona were designed to maintain the integrity of the Minuteman missile while in transit. The first excess Minuteman arrived a t Hill Air Force Range on 26 April 1967, to be stored for eventual use in support of special test programs. The range facility was capable of storing up to 64 missiles. The missiles would be returned as a result of the Minuteman Force Modernization Program. Shortly thereafter, on 23 May 1967, the first LGM-30 Stage I11 carriage and retainer for Minuteman I11 was received a t the Equipment Control Center. There would eventually be a total of 68 carriages and 30 retainers. On 26 June 1968, the first Minuteman I11 training missile was shipped from Boeing Air Force Plant 77, Hill AFB to the Boeing Company, Seattle, for acceptance and checkout. This was the lead item in the Minuteman I11 Program. The 100th missile move between Hill Air Force Range, Lakeside, Utah and Hill AFB was accomplished on 12 September 1968. The final force modernization LGM-30 production missile, Number 2660, was assembled by Air Force Plant 77 and shipped to Malmstrom AFB on 6 May 1969. The production of third-stage Minuteman I1 motors also ended. The last one was delivered from Hercules Inc., to Air Force Plant 77 on 17 December 1969. Meanwhile, on 17 September 1969, the first air movement of a Minuteman I11 LGM-30 missile took place. The missile went to Vandenberg AFB from Hill AFB aboard a special mission C-133B aircraft. While supporting the Minuteman, the Directorate of Maintenance continued to support Titan missiles. Maintenance received three of them in May 1965 from the manufacturer, the Martin Company of Denver, Colorado. These and others to follow were "spares" held at Hill AFB until SAC required them to fill silos vacated by Titan 11s
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Minuteman launch test.

needing repair. Storage activity was also part of the preparation for repair work assumed by OOAMA in the phase-down of the San Bernardino AMA. On 7 June 1965, the bulk movement of Weapon System Storage Site and Inventory Management Stocks from the San Bernardino AMA began coming to Warehouse 5. The movement involved 400-500 line items per day until approximately 13,000 were moved by early July 1965. The last shipment of about 9,000 slow-moving Titan I1 missile items left San Bernardino AMA on 24 June 1965 and arrived a t Hill AFB the following day. Subsequently, on 1 July 1965, fast-moving Titan I1 Weapon System Storage Site (WSSS) HiValu items, numbering approximately 5,267, began coming from Norton AFB, California to Hill

THIOKOL WASATCH DlVlSlON I F PLANT 78

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Northern Utah map showing proximity Hill AFB, Weapons Ranges, missile contractors.

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AFLC TEST RANGE

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AF-MAROUARDT LABORATORY. JET LITTLE MOLJNTAIN. UTAH

T H I O K O A F PLANT DEDICATION L~ 78

BOEING-OPERATED AIR FORCE PLANT 77.HILLA I R FORCE A S E . UTAH B

Minuteman Second-Stage Motor blasts off horizontal test stand marking opening Hill Air Force Range 31 Jul. 1964