The 13th Space Warning Squadron (13SWS) is a missile warning unit assigned to the United States Space Force and located at Clear Space Force Station 5 miles (8 km) south of Anderson, Alaska
Mission The primary mission of the 13th SWS is to provide early warning of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) launches to the Missile Warning Center at North American Aerospace Defense Command. The secondary mission of the 13SWS is to provide space surveillance data on orbiting objects to the Space Control Center also located in the Cheyenne Mountain Complex.
History The 13th SWS is controlled by the Missile Warning Center, part of the NORAD, and by the Space Control Center, part of United States Strategic Command. Both agencies are located at the Cheyenne Mountain Operations Center in Colorado. Clear accomplishes these missions using the Solid State Phased Array Radar System (SSPARS) radar. Clear's radar was originally located at El Dorado Air Station, Texas as part of the PAVE PAWS program and was only recently transplanted to Alaska to replace the US' last mechanical missile warning radar site.
Assignments
Major Command Air Force Space Command (1 May 1983–Present) Strategic Air Command (1 December 1979 – 1 May 1983) Air Defense Command (later Aerospace Defense Command) (1 November 1966 – 1 December 1979)
Wing/Group Space Delta 4 (later Mission Delta 4), 24 July 2020Squadron Lineage and Honors 21st Space Wing (15 May 1992–inactivation) 1st Space Wing (1 May 1983 – 14 May 1992) 47th Air Division, 1 December 1979; Alaskan ADCOM Region, 1 October 1976; Fourteenth Aerospace Force, 30 Apr 1971; 71st Missile Warning Wing, 1 January 1967 Air Defense Command, 1 Nov 1966;
Previous designations 13th Space Warning Squadron (15 May 1992–Present) 13th Missile Warning Squadron (1 November 1966 – 15 May 1992)
Bases stationed Clear Missile Early Warning Station (later Clear AFS, Clear AS, and Clear Space Force Station), Alaska (1 January 1967–Present)
Decorations Air Force Outstanding Unit Award 1 October 1997 – 30 September 1999AFSPC Special Order GA-58, 6 December 1999 1 January 1998 – 31 December 1998AFSPC Special Order GA-62, 6 December 1999 1 October 1995 – 30 September 1997AFSPC Special Order GA-09, 1 November 1997 1 May 1983 – 30 April 1984 1 July 1971 – 30 June 1973 1 June 1968 – 31 May 1970
List of commanders
Lt Col Stephen Whiting, July 2004–July 2005 Lt Col Torrence W. Saxe, June 2011–March 2012 Lt Col Michael Sowa, ~2010 Lt Col Matthew A. Morand, June 2012–May 2013 Lt Col Jason Burch, June 2015 Lt Col Joel Lane, 13 June 2017 Lt Col Jeffrey Rutherford, 13 June 2018 Lt Col Shawn P. Lee, 20 June 2019 Lt Col Shahn Rashid, 2 July 2020 Lt Col William Hassey, June 2021LinkedIIn Lt Col Christopher Castle, 16 June 2022 Lt Col Stephanie Flowers, June 2023LinkedIn
References
External links Lineage and Honors, 13th Space Warning Squadron, Department of the Air Force, circa 2 October 2023.