SGT. Rich Dvorin
321st Missile Maintenance Squad
Strategic Air Command – Minute Man Missile System II
Grand Forks, ND July ’65-Jan ‘69
321st Missile Maintenance Squad
Strategic Air Command – Minute Man Missile System II
Grand Forks, ND July ’65-Jan ‘69
Rich Dvorin was born in Hartford, CT in May of 1947 as the world looked to go back to normal after the conclusion of World War II. He moved to neighboring West Hartford where he grew up with his two brothers and attended Conard High School. After graduating from high school, Rich said, “I felt I wanted a change”. Rich could see that Vietnam was heating up and he knew it was just a question of time before he would be drafted. Rich decided to enlist, hoping that he would have a better opportunity of getting into an area that interested him.
The Air Force recruiter let him take a variety of tests on the spot and asked Rich what areas interested him. Rich said he was interested in Missiles and Rocketry which he viewed as a growing field. The Air Force said yes, and Rick went off to Basic Training at Lackland Air Force base in Texas. After a short time in Basic he was shipped off to Chanute AFB in Rantoul, Illinois for training in electronics and missile systems, in particular the Minute Man II Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) program. This was very rigorous and technical training. Rich was one of 15 men who started the class and was one of only 3 that was able to complete the training.
The Minute Man II program replaced the Minute Man I program and was a major component of the Cold War arms race with the Soviet Union. The MM II were Silo based ICBM’s capable of traveling close to 8,000 miles. These ICBM’s carried nuclear warheads and were the third leg of the U.S. nuclear triad. The first test took place in 1964 and the MM II was placed in service beginning in 1965. As part of the force Modernization Program begun in the mid-1960’s to modernize the Air Force missiles, the MM II ICBM’s would eventually replace the entire fleet of MM I ICBM’s. The missiles were deployed to 6 bases located in fairly remote areas of the US. Two such bases were Malmstrom AFB in Montana and Grand Forks AFB in North Dakota. The first operational MM II squadron went on alert at Grand Forks Air Force Base in Grand Forks, ND during 1966.
After training Rich then reported to Malmstrom Air Force Base. He spent 1 year there before being transferred to Grand Forks Air Force Base in Grand Forks, ND. Rich was teamed with a partner, and they were responsible for assisting in the preparation and maintenance of the Minute Man II Missile System (MM II) prior to launch and stressing operational realism at all times. They performed checkout and troubleshooting as well as start-up and quick reaction maintenance. The MM II program was so new at this time Rich spent a lot of time with the government contractor responsible for developing the missile program. He helped write the system procedures and instructions.
Based upon an annual Performance Appraisal that I saw; Rich was very highly rated and valued. He was selected to be part of Giant Blade Task Force which accompanied a Minute Man II missile to the Vandenberg Air Force Base in Vandenberg, CA. There he participated in a test launch. Later, Rich’s in-depth knowledge of the MM II system allowed him to become an instructor. Rich’s 7/25/68 performance review read, in part, “Instructor in the Team Training Section. Only the highest qualified personnel are considered for this position.”
In January of 1969 the Air Force would have liked Rich to extend his commitment but Rich wanted to go to school and get on with his life. Rich was discharged in January of 1969 and came back to the Hartford CT area to attend New England Technical Institute focusing on electronics.
Rich went on to enjoy a successful career including positions with NCR Corp working on ATM’s and check processing equipment and Foxwoods Casino working on slot machine programing. Rich retired at the age of 70 and now resides in Brooklyn, CT with his wife.
Thank you, Rich, for your hard work that eventually helped the US to negotiate a reduction of nuclear arms with the Soviet Union during Strategic Arms Reduction Talks (START) in the early 1990’s.
The Air Force recruiter let him take a variety of tests on the spot and asked Rich what areas interested him. Rich said he was interested in Missiles and Rocketry which he viewed as a growing field. The Air Force said yes, and Rick went off to Basic Training at Lackland Air Force base in Texas. After a short time in Basic he was shipped off to Chanute AFB in Rantoul, Illinois for training in electronics and missile systems, in particular the Minute Man II Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) program. This was very rigorous and technical training. Rich was one of 15 men who started the class and was one of only 3 that was able to complete the training.
The Minute Man II program replaced the Minute Man I program and was a major component of the Cold War arms race with the Soviet Union. The MM II were Silo based ICBM’s capable of traveling close to 8,000 miles. These ICBM’s carried nuclear warheads and were the third leg of the U.S. nuclear triad. The first test took place in 1964 and the MM II was placed in service beginning in 1965. As part of the force Modernization Program begun in the mid-1960’s to modernize the Air Force missiles, the MM II ICBM’s would eventually replace the entire fleet of MM I ICBM’s. The missiles were deployed to 6 bases located in fairly remote areas of the US. Two such bases were Malmstrom AFB in Montana and Grand Forks AFB in North Dakota. The first operational MM II squadron went on alert at Grand Forks Air Force Base in Grand Forks, ND during 1966.
After training Rich then reported to Malmstrom Air Force Base. He spent 1 year there before being transferred to Grand Forks Air Force Base in Grand Forks, ND. Rich was teamed with a partner, and they were responsible for assisting in the preparation and maintenance of the Minute Man II Missile System (MM II) prior to launch and stressing operational realism at all times. They performed checkout and troubleshooting as well as start-up and quick reaction maintenance. The MM II program was so new at this time Rich spent a lot of time with the government contractor responsible for developing the missile program. He helped write the system procedures and instructions.
Based upon an annual Performance Appraisal that I saw; Rich was very highly rated and valued. He was selected to be part of Giant Blade Task Force which accompanied a Minute Man II missile to the Vandenberg Air Force Base in Vandenberg, CA. There he participated in a test launch. Later, Rich’s in-depth knowledge of the MM II system allowed him to become an instructor. Rich’s 7/25/68 performance review read, in part, “Instructor in the Team Training Section. Only the highest qualified personnel are considered for this position.”
In January of 1969 the Air Force would have liked Rich to extend his commitment but Rich wanted to go to school and get on with his life. Rich was discharged in January of 1969 and came back to the Hartford CT area to attend New England Technical Institute focusing on electronics.
Rich went on to enjoy a successful career including positions with NCR Corp working on ATM’s and check processing equipment and Foxwoods Casino working on slot machine programing. Rich retired at the age of 70 and now resides in Brooklyn, CT with his wife.
Thank you, Rich, for your hard work that eventually helped the US to negotiate a reduction of nuclear arms with the Soviet Union during Strategic Arms Reduction Talks (START) in the early 1990’s.