The 45th Space Wing: Its Heritage, History & Honors 1950-1998

Preface

For more than 45 years, the Air Force's continuous participation in missile and space operations has been a particular source of pride for the 45th Space Wing and its predecessor organizations. The Wing's lineage dates back to the Air Force Division of the Joint Long Range Proving Ground, an Air Force/Army/Navy organization which was established on 1 October 1949 to manage missile testing and launch operations on the Eastern Range. Upon its activation in 1949, the Air Force Division assumed responsibility for the Joint Long Range Proving Ground Base (formerly the Banana River Naval Air Station, a World War II seaplane patrol and training base). On 16 May 1950, the Air Force Division was renamed the Long Range Proving Ground Division, and it assumed sole responsibility for the Proving Ground. The Long Range Proving Ground Base was renamed Patrick Air Force Base in honor of Major General Mason M. Patrick on 1 August 1950. From those humble beginnings, the Division and its successors coordinated and managed the development of the Eastern Range, which soon became one of the busiest and most important missile and space support ranges in the world.

The purpose of this pamphlet is to summarize the heritage, history and honors of the 45th Space Wing and its forebears at Patrick Air Force Base and Cape Canaveral. Briefly, we will describe the evolution of the Wing from its earliest beginnings as a division to its present status as a full-fledged Air Force wing. We will present an overview of the Eastern Range's development, including efforts to resize and modernize its resources. We will discuss the roles of military, civilian and contractor personnel in range and launch operations. We will list the principal commanders and present comments from their oral history interviews. We will review the most important launch facilities and missile and space programs they supported. We will look at the Wing's heraldry and honors. Finally, we will present a chronology of events that represent major milestones in the development of the Eastern Range and the missile and space programs it has supported over the past five decades.

MARK C. CLEARY

November 1998