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Peterson, Schriever, Cheyenne Mountain cultivate a new identity

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Alexus Wilcox
  • Peterson-Schriever Garrison Public Affairs

Schriever Air Force Base, Peterson Air Force Base and Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station received new names during the renaming ceremony at Peterson Space Force Base, Colorado, July 26, 2021.

The installations are now named Schriever Space Force Base, Peterson Space Force Base and Cheyenne Mountain Space Force Station.

The bases’ names changed as part of the overall initiative by the Department of the Air Force to establish a unique identity and culture within the U.S. Space Force, and more accurately reflect the important space missions performed by Airmen and Guardians stationed there.

U.S. Space Force Lt. Gen. Stephen N. Whiting, Space Operations Command commander, presided over the ceremony, along with U.S. Space Force Col. Shay Warakomski, Peterson-Schriever Garrison commander.

 “Although we are celebrating our new designation as Space Force installations today, we are also honoring the rich history we’ve built here on the Front Range and in the Pikes Peak Region,” said Whiting. “Our ties and connections to the past are indelible as Peterson, Schriever and Cheyenne Mountain have long served as the heart, eyes and ears of our national security interest in space.”

Peterson SFB’s history, and it’s evolution from air defense to space warfighting missions, dates back to World War II. Peterson SFB has played a central role in U.S. and allied national defense for decades. Today, Peterson SFB maintains a mission centered on the ability to defy gravity for operations in the air and space domains. 

Peterson SFB provides mission support to Space Operations Command, Space Delta 2 – Space Domain Awareness, Space Delta 3 – Space Electronic Warfare and Space Delta 7 – Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance.

 “It is incredibly important to illuminate our past and to celebrate the accomplishments of those who have come before us, previous Guardians of the High Frontier, as well as recognize the community relationships both past and present that got us here today,” said Warakomski.

Like Peterson SFB, Schriever SFB has a rich history beginning in 1983. The base was previously named Falcon Air Force Station, an installation intended to provide a back-up control node for support of existing and planned satellite constellations, and to house an operations support center for NASA’s space shuttle.

Schriever SFB’s current mission centering combat power for space is executed by Joint Task Force-Space Defense, Space Delta 6 – Cyberspace Operations, Space Delta 8 – Satellite Communications and Navigational Warfare and Space Delta 9 – Orbital Warfare. 

The history of Cheyenne Mountain dates back to 1956, when the initial mission of Cheyenne Mountain was to protect the country against the Russian threat and has since evolved into what it is to today, serving as North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command's Alternate Command Center and as a training site for crew qualification.

“We have to build upon the legacy and history, the civic relationships and all that has made Peterson, Schriever and Cheyenne Mountain great as we move forward with a vision for the future,” said Warakomski.

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