The
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
's 1st Space Launch Squadron was a space launch unit located at
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station
Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) is an installation of the United States Space Force's Space Launch Delta 45, located on Cape Canaveral in Brevard County, Florida.
Headquartered at the nearby Patrick Space Force Base, the sta ...
, Florida. It was responsible for USAF
Delta II
Delta II was an expendable launch system, originally designed and built by McDonnell Douglas, and sometimes known as the Thorad Delta 1. Delta II was part of the Delta rocket family, derived directly from the Delta 3000, and entered service in ...
launches from its activation in October 1990 to its inactivation in August 2009.
History
Air Force launch operations were transferred from
Air Force Systems Command
The Air Force Systems Command (AFSC) is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command. It was established in April 1951, being split off from Air Materiel Command. The mission of AFSC was Research and Development for new weapons systems.
AFS ...
to
Air Force Space Command
An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosphere ...
in the early 1990s. Phase I of the Launch Transfer Plan began on 1
October
October is the tenth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. The eighth month in the old calendar of Romulus , October retained its name (from Latin and Greek ''ôctō'' meaning "eight") after Januar ...
1990
Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...
, with the redesignation of the Eastern and
Western Space and Missile Centers, as the
30th and
45th Space Wings.
The 1st Space Launch Squadron was activated on 1 October 1990 and became Air Force Space Command's first
Delta II
Delta II was an expendable launch system, originally designed and built by McDonnell Douglas, and sometimes known as the Thorad Delta 1. Delta II was part of the Delta rocket family, derived directly from the Delta 3000, and entered service in ...
launch squadron.
[World Airpower Journal. (1992). US Air Force Air Power Directory. Aerospace Publishing: London, UK. ] Its final launch of a Delta II was on 17 August 2009. Its final launch successfully placed the
USA-206
USA-206, also GPS SVN-50, PRN-05 and NAVSTAR 64 and known before launch as GPS IIR-21, GPS IIRM-8 or GPS IIR-21(M), is an American navigation satellite that forms part of the Navstar Global Positioning System. It was the twenty-first and last Bl ...
, or GPS IIR-21(M)
navigation satellite
A satellite navigation or satnav system is a system that uses satellites to provide autonomous geopositioning. A satellite navigation system with global coverage is termed global navigation satellite system (GNSS). , four global systems are op ...
into orbit.
The squadron was inactivated on 30
September
September is the ninth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 30 days.
September in the Northern Hemisphere and March in the Southern Hemisphere are seasonally equivalent.
In the Northern hemisphere, the b ...
.
[Research Division, Air Force Historical Research Agency, Air Force Organization Change Status Report, September 2009, Maxwell AFB, AL]
Lineage
* Constituted as the 1st Space Launch Squadron on 11 September 1990
: Activated on 1 October 1990
[
: Inactivated on 30 September 2009][
]
Assignments
* Eastern Space and Missile Center, 1 October 1990
* 45th Operations Group
The 45th Operations Group was a United States Air Force unit. It was assigned to 45th Space Wing, stationed at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. In May 2021, it was inactivated and its assetts reassigned to Space Launch Delta 45.
Up ...
, 12 November 1991
* 45th Launch Group
The 45th Launch Group is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the 45th Space Wing, stationed at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.
Overview
The 45th Launch Group participates in receipt, inspection, processing, test, and la ...
, 1 December 2003 – 30 September 2009[
]
Stations
* Cape Canaveral Air Force Station
Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) is an installation of the United States Space Force's Space Launch Delta 45, located on Cape Canaveral in Brevard County, Florida.
Headquartered at the nearby Patrick Space Force Base, the sta ...
, Florida, 1 October 1990 – 30 September 2009[
]
Space Launch Vehicles
* Delta II, 1990-2009[
]
References
Notes
External links
United States Air Force: Patrick Air Force Base
{{USAF Space Command
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Space Launch 0001