USAF stands up new helicopter group to support ICBM forces

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- Gareth Jennings, London

The US Air Force (USAF) has stood up its newly created 20th Air Force (AF) Helicopter Operations Group (HOG), as it looks to improve the mission effectiveness and moralle of its nuclear missile forces.

The 20th AF HOG, which was stood up on 1 August, brings together the three individual helicopter squadrons that currently support the USAF's intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) force into a single unified command, based at F E Warren Air Force Base (AFB) in Wyoming.

Combining the 37th Helicopter Squadron (HS), 40th HS, and the 54th HS, the 20th AF HOG will retain its provisional status until sometime in 2015, at which time it will assume control of all ICBM-support helicopter operations.

"The mission of the [group], while in provisional status, is to identify, prioritise and create the facility, personnel, communication and process infrastructure required to transfer control of the three helicopter squadrons to the Helicopter Operations Group," Colonel Dave Smith, 20th AF HOG commander said.

According to the USAF, the 20th AF HOG was formed as a result of a recommendation made during the Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC) Force Improvement Program (FIP), which was initiated as a means for service personnel to be directly involved in the improvement of force morale.

The initiative is one of a number of a measures recently announced by the USAF in the wake of a series of scandals and failings of its nuclear forces. While these generally include better prospects for promotion, an increase in manning levels, and a greater emphasis on professional development, in the case of the 20th AF HOG it involves the creation of an aviation-focused chain of command equipped to support the ICBM mission for the first time.

The scandals and failings that have befallen the USAF's nuclear forces date back to 2006, when sensitive missile components were inadvertently shipped to Taiwan This was followed in 2007 by the accidental flight of a nuclear-armed Boeing B-52H Stratofortress bomber over the United States.

In 2009 an inspection report into the 377th Air Base Wing and the 498th Nuclear Systems Wing at Kirtland Air Force Base (AFB) in New Mexico found standards to be "significantly deficient", while in 2013 the 341st Missile Wing at Malmstrom AFB in Montana was given an "unsatisfactory" rating in two of the 13 categories assessed during an Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC) inspection.

In June 2013 19 launch personnel assigned to the 91st Missile Wing at Minot AFB in North Dakota were suspended as a result of a "breakdown in overall discipline", with a subsequent USAF investigation resulting in the removal of nine launch officers, and in October of that year the ICBM force commander, Major General Michael Carey, was dismissed following "a loss of trust and confidence in his leadership and judgment".

Though none of these failings were caused by or affected by the 20th AF's helicopter community, morale would no doubt have been adversely affected by the Fiscal Year 2013 decision to cancel the Common Vertical Lift Support Platform (CVLSP) programme. This programme was designed to replace the Bell UH-1 'Huey' helicopters that have been performing the nuclear support mission since 1969. While an undisclosed number of the current 62 UH-1N helicopters will be upgraded and additonal platforms transferred from the US Marine Corps, the cancellation of the CVLSP programme was a disappointment to the USAF's nuclear forces. The USAF will hope that this is somewhat alleviated by the creation of the 20th AF HOG.