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LGM-30 Minuteman II, U. S. Air Force, Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, South Dakota Air and Space Museum

The Minuteman Missile II was built by Boeing and deployed during the Cold War spanning over 30 years. The 44th Strategic Missile Wing based at Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota controlled 150 Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missiles buried in silos across south western South Dakota starting in 1963. The START-1 Treaty (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) called for the reduction of the number of nuclear weapons worldwide. The reduction resulted in the phase out and destruction of missiles and silos that were controlled by the 44th Strategic Missile Wing. By 1997 silos commanded by the 44th Strategic Missile Wing had been imploded. The exception being two sites left intact that are the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site under the control of the National Park Service.

 

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Uploaded on August 14, 2016
Taken on October 30, 2015