Editing Vandenberg Space Force Base (section)

==== Cooke Air Force Base ====
As the 1950s ushered in the age of [[missile]]s, and the United States urgently needed a training ground that could also serve as an initial combat ready missile base. In 1956, after examining over 200 potential locations, a committee selected Camp Cooke. Similar to its appeal in 1941 for the Army, Camp Cooke's vast size, remoteness, moderate climate, and coastal location made it ideal. Missiles could be launched westward over the [[Pacific Ocean]] without flying over populated areas, and satellites could be placed into [[polar orbit]] towards the [[South Pole]] without traversing any landmass until reaching [[Antarctica]].<ref name="vafbhistory" />

Following the committee's recommendation, on 16 November 1956, the Secretary of Defense directed the Army to transfer {{cvt|64000|acre|ha}} to the [[United States Air Force]]. This land was initially called '''North Camp Cooke''', but when the official transfer happened on 21 June 1957 it was named '''Cooke Air Force Base'''.

The first airmen of the 6591st Support Squadron arrived on 15 February, before the official transfer, and found the base in rough shape. World War II-era buildings were dilapidated, and roads needed extensive repair. Over the next two years, launch and control facilities emerged, old structures were renovated, and new housing was built. The initial mission of the base was to train personnel on the [[PGM-17 Thor]], [[SM-65 Atlas]], and [[HGM-25A Titan I]] missiles, while also serving as an emergency operational facility for the Atlas.<ref name="vafbhistory" /><ref name="Chronology">{{cite web |title=SAC Missile Chronology 1 May 1990 Office of the Historian, Strategic Air Command |url=http://www.alternatewars.com/WW3/WW3_Documents/USAF/SAC_MSL_CHRON_1939-88.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303184443/http://www.alternatewars.com/WW3/WW3_Documents/USAF/SAC_MSL_CHRON_1939-88.htm |archive-date=3 March 2016 |access-date=31 March 2013 |publisher=Alternatewars.com}}</ref>

The 1957 launch of [[Sputnik 1|Sputnik]] by the Soviet Union [[Sputnik crisis|intensified the urgency]] of the U.S. missile program. In November, the Department of Defense authorized ballistic missile launches from Cooke AFB. Management responsibility shifted from the [[Air Research and Development Command]] (ARDC) to the [[Strategic Air Command]] (SAC) in January 1958. SAC assumed responsibility for training missile launch crews and achieving initial operational capability. ARDC retained oversight of site activation, research, and development testing. This began a close working relationship between the two commands that would last 35 years.<ref name="vafbhistory" />

In February 1958, the [[PGM-19 Jupiter]] program was transferred from the Army to the Air Force. SAC established squadrons for both the Jupiter and Atlas missiles at Cooke. Construction also began on the Operational System Test Facility for the Titan I. The first Thor missile arrived later that year.<ref name="vafbhistory" /><ref name="Chronology" />

The southern {{cvt|19800|acre|ha}} of Cooke AFB was transferred to the Navy in May 1958 for their Pacific Missile Range. However, in 1963, a restructuring returned major sections of this range, including [[Point Arguello]], to the Air Force. This move gave the Air Force full responsibility for missile range safety at Vandenberg and much of the Pacific Ocean. The Air Force renamed the area the [[Western Range (USSF)|Western Range]].<ref name="vafbhistory" />