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Cavalier AFS renamed as U.S. Space Force installation

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Dakota C. LeGrand, 319 RW/PA

Cavalier Air Force Station was renamed Cavalier Space Force Station during a ceremony on July 30, 2021.

Cavalier Space Force Station, located in Eastern North Dakota, is home to the 10th Space Warning Squadron, a geographically separated unit of Space Delta 4, located at Buckley Space Force Base, Colorado.

The renaming follows Schriever Space Force Base, Peterson Space Force Base and Cheyenne Mountain Space Force Station, which were also renamed just four days prior.

These changes are part of the Department of the Air Force’s initiative to establish the U.S. Space Force as an independent service focused on excellence in the space domain to fit the needs of our modern way of life and war. 

In order to provide the most lethal warfighting capability, it is vital that the U.S. Space Force owns and controls the places where Guardians innovate, work and live to establish a distinct identity and culture within the new branch.

“This sends a clear and concise message from America to our allies and adversaries alike,” said Lt. Col. Travis Kennebeck, 10 SWS commander. “We are and will continue to be focused and driven to capture, maintain and exploit space dominance, ensuring our way of life both here and abroad.”

This change signifies a realignment of the installation under the U.S. Space Force rather than a change in mission.

The 10 SWS will continue to operate and maintain the Perimeter Acquisition Radar Attack Characterization System (PARCS), a phased-array radar system that tracks over half of all earth-orbiting objects.

The PARCS allows Cavalier SFS to provide critical missile warning and space surveillance data to North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), United States Space Command (USSPACECOM) and regional combatant commanders.

Cavalier SFS also provides attack characterization data to the Secretary of Defense and the President of the United States for real time war plan execution decisions.

“This radar system and the personnel assigned here for almost five decades have delivered incredible results and continue to be a vital lynch pin to the defense of our nation,” said Kennebeck.