DescriptionThe U.S. Army established East Base in 1942 as a fueling stop for airplanes bound for the Soviet Union, part of the Lend-Lease program during World War II. It also served as a training facility for 4 bombardment groups. After the war, it became a training base for the Berlin Airlift. On June 15, 1956, the name Malmstrom Air Force Base was adopted to honor Col. Einar Axel Malmstrom, who died in 1954 when his T-33 crashed a few miles south of the base. In 1954, the U.S. Strategic Air Command stationed the 407th Strategic Fighter Wing at Malmstrom. In response to Cold War fears, in 1960 Boeing Corporation began building the Minuteman missile field in a wide oval stretching from Heart Butte to Shawmut. Between 1960 and 1967, crews built 200 missile launch control facilities, better known as missile silos, connected by cable to 20 launch control centers staffed by officers on alert 24 hours a day. In 2007, about 6,600 military personnel worked at Malmstrom, contributing more than $287 million to the local economy annually. In 2007, approximately 200 Minuteman III missiles, each capable of carrying three 20-megaton nuclear warheads, remained on alert beneath the Montana prairie.Personal NamesMalmstrom, Einar AxelOther Name(s)East BaseContributing InstitutionMontana Historical Society Library and ArchivesGeolocation[1] Elevation3470 ft.CountyCascade County
