91st Security Forces Group

The 91st Security Forces Group is a United States Air Force organization based at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota. It operates under the 91st Missile Wing and provides command, organization, training, equipment, and operational control for security forces assigned to the wing's nuclear missile mission. Its principal responsibility is the defense of Protection Level 1 assets: 150 Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles, their launch facilities, and 15 geographically separated Missile Alert Facilities distributed across approximately 8,500 square miles of the Minot missile complex. The group supplies the security architecture supporting the missile wing, including anti-terrorism, physical security, convoy and installation defense, response forces, and the protection of personnel and equipment associated with the nuclear mission. Its units are among the largest concentration of Security Forces personnel at Minot Air Force Base. Together with the base's 5th Security Forces Squadron, the group contributes to Minot's status as one of the Department of Defense installations with the largest Security Forces presence. The organization traces its lineage to the 91st Security Police Group, constituted in September 1973 and activated on 1 October of that year. It was redesignated the 91st Missile Security Group in 1992 before being inactivated around July 1994. The group was subsequently redesignated the 91st Security Forces Group and reactivated around 2003, retaining an enduring association with the 91st Missile Wing and its predecessor formations. The group commands or supports several specialized units. These include the 91st Missile Security Forces Squadron, the 791st Missile Security Forces Squadron, the 891st Missile Security Forces Squadron, and the 91st Missile Security Operations Squadron. The 891st squadron emerged from the Missile Security Operating Concept, initially functioning as a shadow formation during a beta period beginning in 2016 before formal activation in November 2017. A 219th Security Forces Squadron element from the North Dakota Air National Guard has also been attached to the organization since 2008. In 2016 and 2017, the group was associated with implementation of the Missile Security Operating Concept, an effort intended to reorganize and standardize security operations across the three United States Air Force nuclear missile wings at Minot, Malmstrom, and F. E. Warren. The organization also received public attention in 2018 after the loss of accountability for a container of 40 mm grenades and, later that month, an M240 machine gun during command-wide inventory activity. The incidents led to the removal of commander Colonel Jason Beers for loss of trust and confidence. The group nevertheless remains an active component of the United States Air Force's nuclear deterrence and missile-site security structure.

The 91st Security Forces Group is part of the security structure supporting the United States Air Force's nuclear missile mission at Minot Air Force Base. Its lineage began on 25 September 1973, when the 91st Security Police Group was constituted. The organization was activated on 1 October 1973 in association with the 91st Strategic Missile Wing, the predecessor of the modern 91st Missile Wing. In its original form, it provided security-police capabilities for the wing's missile infrastructure and related military installation requirements. On 15 December 1992, the group was redesignated the 91st Missile Security Group, reflecting the increasing emphasis on security for the wing's strategic missile mission. The formation was inactivated around 1 July 1994. Its lineage was later continued when it was redesignated the 91st Security Forces Group and reactivated around 2003. The reactivated group remained associated with the 91st Wing lineage, which has included the 91st Missile Wing and, for a period, the 91st Space Wing. The modern group is responsible for coordinating security forces across a large and dispersed missile complex surrounding Minot Air Force Base. Rather than protecting a single concentrated facility, its personnel support 150 Minuteman III missiles, their launch facilities, and 15 Missile Alert Facilities spread over roughly 8,500 square miles. Its responsibilities include anti-terrorism, physical security, security patrols, defense of protected assets, and deployment of response forces. The geographical scale of the mission requires centralized command and control together with specialized squadrons capable of rotating personnel through remote missile-field locations. The group's principal operational formations include the 91st Missile Security Forces Squadron and the 791st Missile Security Forces Squadron, the latter known by the nickname “Dark Horses.” The 891st Missile Security Forces Squadron, associated with the “Shadow Warriors” designation, was created in the context of the Missile Security Operating Concept. It existed in shadow form during a beta implementation beginning in November 2016 and formally became an operational squadron in November 2017. The 91st Missile Security Operations Squadron provides a specialized operations function within the group's security structure. The 219th Security Forces Squadron, a North Dakota Air National Guard unit, has been attached since December 2008. The Missile Security Operating Concept was developed as an effort to improve the organization and employment of security personnel at nuclear missile wings. The concept began beta testing at Minot in November 2016 and was extended to the missile wings at Malmstrom Air Force Base and F. E. Warren Air Force Base in October 2017. This change was a significant operational development because it affected the way security forces were organized and used across the United States land-based nuclear missile enterprise. In May 2018, the group became the subject of public reporting after two equipment-accountability problems. On 4 May, an ammunition container holding 40 mm grenades for an MK-19 was reported missing from the missile field. On 16 May, the organization said that it could not account for an M240 machine gun during a command-wide inventory. On 23 May, Colonel Jason Beers was relieved of command for loss of trust and confidence. These events represented a serious security and accountability controversy for an organization charged with protecting nuclear-related assets, although the available reference material does not establish additional findings or sanctions. The 91st Security Forces Group remains an active United States Air Force organization. Its continuing role is to provide trained, organized, and equipped security forces for the 91st Missile Wing, protecting missile sites and related assets while supporting the broader deterrence mission at Minot.

• 2018

  Equipment-accountability incidents and command change

  [1]91st Security Forces Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The group reported an unaccounted-for grenade container and M240 machine gun in May; commander Jason Beers was relieved on 23 May.

• 2017

  Missile Security Operating Concept implemented across three missile wings

  [1]91st Security Forces Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The concept was expanded across the Minot, Malmstrom, and F. E. Warren nuclear missile wings in October 2017.

• 2017

  891st Missile Security Forces Squadron formally activated

  [1]91st Security Forces Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The 891st Missile Security Forces Squadron became an official operational squadron in November 2017 after its shadow-unit period.

• 2016

  Missile Security Operating Concept enters beta testing

  [1]91st Security Forces Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The group began beta implementation of the Missile Security Operating Concept, and the future 891st squadron operated as a shadow unit.

• 2008

  219th Security Forces Squadron attached

  [1]91st Security Forces Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The 219th Security Forces Squadron of the North Dakota Air National Guard was attached to the group beginning 18 December 2008.

• 2003

  Reactivated as 91st Security Forces Group

  [1]91st Security Forces Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The formation was redesignated the 91st Security Forces Group and reactivated around 2003.

• 1994

  Inactivated

  [1]91st Security Forces Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The group was inactivated around 1 July 1994.

• 1992

  Redesignated 91st Missile Security Group

  [1]91st Security Forces Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The group adopted the 91st Missile Security Group designation on 15 December 1992.

• 1973

  91st Security Police Group constituted and activated

  [1]91st Security Forces Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The organization was constituted on 25 September 1973 as the 91st Security Police Group and activated on 1 October 1973.

A specialized United States Air Force security command focused on protecting nuclear missile assets, geographically dispersed launch facilities, and associated personnel in the Minot missile complex.

• 2018

  Loss of accountability for weapons and ammunition

  The group reported that it could not account for a container of 40 mm grenades used with an MK-19 and later could not account for an M240 machine gun during a command-wide inventory. The incidents were followed by the relief of commander Colonel Jason Beers for loss of trust and confidence.

  Source

Read more

• 2016Missile Security Operating Concept

  Minot Air Force Base · United States nuclear missile wings

  The 91st Security Forces Group beta-tested a new operating concept for organizing and employing missile security forces. The approach later extended to the nuclear missile wings at Malmstrom and F. E. Warren.

  Outcome. The concept was implemented across all three United States Air Force nuclear missile wings in October 2017 and was associated with the formal creation of the 891st Missile Security Forces Squadron.

  Source

• 2017

  Expanded the Missile Security Operating Concept across nuclear missile wingsStrategy

  Background

  The beta implementation at Minot was used as the basis for a broader security-force operating approach.

  Action taken

  The concept was implemented at Minot, Malmstrom, and F. E. Warren in October 2017.

  Aftermath

  The change established a common approach to missile security operations across the three land-based nuclear missile wings.

  Source

• 2016

  Adopted the Missile Security Operating Concept for beta testingStrategy

  Background

  The group sought an operating model suited to the security requirements of a large, dispersed Minuteman III missile complex.

  Action taken

  It began beta implementation of the Missile Security Operating Concept and used the 891st formation as a shadow unit.

  Aftermath

  The concept was later adopted across the three United States Air Force nuclear missile wings and contributed to the formal establishment of the 891st Missile Security Forces Squadron.

  Source

1. 191st Security Forces Groupen.wikipedia.org