Air Force Global Strike Command stood up Sentinel Site Activation Task Force, Detachment 11 during a ceremony at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana, April 4, 2025. 

The stand-up of the detachment is a key milestone for the fielding of the Sentinel Intercontinental Ballistic Missile at Malmstrom AFB. Similar detachments are standing up or will soon be stood up at F.E. Warren AFB, Wyoming, and Minot AFB, North Dakota.

U.S. Air Force General Thomas A. Bussiere, Air Force Global Strike Command Commander, presided over the activation ceremony.

“One thing we have never done before is maintain full operational capability while we transition from the Minuteman III,” said Bussiere. “It is the most complex undertaking our nation has ever embarked upon.”

Detachment 11 of the Sentinel SATAF will oversee daily operations and activities during the implementation of the Sentinel system deployment, including the construction of facilities required to operate the LGM-35A Sentinel ICBM. The detachment is ultimately responsible for overseeing and coordinating all assigned transition and deployment activities while keeping unity of effort by integrating, synchronizing, and coordinating all government and non-government agencies.

“Malmstrom AFB and the city of Great Falls have been great hosts since the first Minuteman ICBM came on alert 62 years ago,” said Lt. Col. John Mayer, AFGSC Detachment 11 Commander. “The next chapter is beginning though, and I am really proud to be a part of it. Detachment 11 is going to be working hard to ensure Sentinel is deployed effectively and efficiently, partnering with the community every step of the way.”

The Air Force is replacing the Minuteman III with the next-generation Sentinel system, a critical modernization of the land-based leg of the United States’ nuclear triad. Until full capability is achieved with the Sentinel ICBM, the Air Force will field both systems simultaneously, continuing to deter adversaries with the Minuteman III until the last of them is decommissioned.