Video
Delta-01 Audio Described Tour
Transcript
Introduction Delta-01 is an early example of an Air Force launch control facility for intercontinental ballistic missiles. Launch control facilities served as a support buildings for personnel working away from the base at remote locations in the missile field. They were made up of two parts. The aboveground building provided lodging, eating, and recreation facilities for security teams. The underground control room was where missileers sat ready to launch missiles at a moment’s notice.
Built in 1962, the 5100-square-foot building includes seven bedrooms, men’s and women's latrine, kitchen, day room, security office, utility rooms, generator room, and garage. Delta 01 launch control was in active alert status from 1963–1993. This tour explores the above ground portion of the Delta-01 launch control facility. The interior as shown today has been preserved as if it was 1993, when crews were present.
Throughout the building walls are painted white with wood paneling on the lower portion of the wall. All ceilings are drop ceilings with textured acoustical tiles and fluorescent light fixture. Windows are covered with fabric curtains.
Facility Manager Room Size 12 x 14. The floor is covered in a low-pile carpet with a brown, harvest gold, and orange leaf pattern. The room is furnished with blonde-colored wood pieces. The bed sits in the middle of the room under the only two windows in the room. The bed is made with a blue velour blanket and white pillowcase. There is a nightstand to the left of the bed that holds a small lamp. A small bookcase is along the wall to the left of the bed with a scene of a sunset hanging above it. On the wall to the right of the bed, there is a tan metal filing cabinet, a desk, and visitor’s chair. On top of the desk are work order binders and a tan touchtone phone. A gold-framed ocean scene hangs above the desk; a wood-framed mirror hangs to the right of the desk. Chairs at the desk are upholstered with maroon fabric. An armoire is along the wall opposite the bed.
Hallway Length 33 feet. Bedrooms for visitors and security officers are located on the left and right of the hallway. This part of the hallway ends at the fire door. The carpeting in the hallway is not original to the building. The maroon and mauve carpet was added by the National Park Service to designate the visitor route through the building.
Visitor Bedroom Size 12 x 14 feet. The visitor’s bedroom is furnished with three sets of wood bunk beds and one armoire. Mattresses are covered in blue-striped ticking and have a pillow and folded mattress pad at one end. The floor is covered in brown, harvest gold and orange carpet with a leaf pattern.
Security Bedroom Size 12 x 14 feet. This room has two sets of blonde wood bunk beds. One set of bunk beds is immediately to your left as you enter the room. The other is along the far wall, which also has the only windows in the room. However, the windows in the room are painted black so that the night shift security alert team could sleep during the day. Each bed is made with white sheets and a blue velour blanket. A white pillow is at the head of the bed, and a folded blue velour blanket is at the foot. There is a desk along the wall between the two bunk beds, and it matches the wood of the beds. The desk chair is upholstered with maroon fabric. Above the desk is a gold-framed picture of a waterfall. An armoire sets along the opposite wall the desk. To the right of the entryway sits a 6-foot, grey metal locker used for weapons storage and a red weapons clearing barrel.
Hallway Length 18 feet. Past the open door to the cook’s bedroom are the men’s and women’s latrines. This short hallway leads to the day room.
Day Room 18 x 40 feet. The day room in carpeted in a neutral gray. The far wall is covered with a woodland mural with deer and birch trees. A built-in wood entertainment center fills the far corner, just to the left of the mural. It holds a 27-inch TV and features glass-paned cabinet doors above and below the TV. Three mauve couches face the TV and surround a wood coffee table that holds a green plant and several magazines.
The dining area has two rectangular tables with wooden booth-style padded seating covered in blue vinyl and two round tables with brown vinyl padded chairs. On each table, there is an aluminum napkin dispenser and a set of salt and pepper shakers. On one table, a Battleship board game is set up.
Kitchen Size 14 x 11 feet. The floor of the kitchen is finished with marbleized grey vinyl tiles. White vinyl paneling 6 feet high covers the walls with the remaining wall painted light blue. To the right of the kitchen entryway is a stainless steel countertop and sink with orange metal cabinets below. The stainless steel electric stove top and grill are located along the back wall. On the wall to the left of the entryway is a brown letter board with white letters that displays a menu of items offered by the kitchen in 1993. Just left of the menu board is a stainless steel order window.
At the far end of the day room is a hallway length 13 feet. This is the buildings main entrance. Wood storage cabinets fill the right side of the hallway. Flight Security Control Size 9 x 17 feet. The Flight Security Office is located in the front corner of the building. The room is furnished with an L-shaped, tan-colored desk that is 11 feet long. The desk has two blue upholstered office chairs. The desk features three black touch tone phones and a radio receiver, mic, and speaker unit. Windows are covered with transparent, tinted roller shades. The white open door at the back left of the office provides access to the elevator room.
Elevator room Size 6 x 11 feet. The elevator door is a grey steel folding gate. The elevator car walls are covered in mauve carpet 6 feet high and capped with a dark wood trim. The remaining wall is painted white.
Delta-01 Launch Control Capsule Introduction Delta-01 is an early example of an Air Force launch control facility for intercontinental ballistic missiles. The launch control facilities served as a support building for personnel working away from the base at remote locations in the missile field. Launch control facilities are made up of two parts: an aboveground support building and underground launch control center. The aboveground building provided sleeping, eating, and recreation facilities for security teams. The underground control room was where missileers sat ready to launch missiles at a moment’s notice. Built in 1962, Delta 01 launch control was in active alert status until 1993.
This tour explores the underground portion of the launch control facility. The launch control center is 31 feet below the surface and is only accessible by elevator.
The Tunnel Junction is an L-shaped hallway about 260 square feet. Flooring is concrete painted medium-grey. Walls are concrete. The lower half is painted blue and upper half is painted white. The wall next to the elevator has a painted mural of a grey minuteman missile bursting through a tattered red Soviet flag.
Blast Door Size 5 ½ x 6 ½ feet. The grey blast door is painted with red letters reading “World-wide delivery in 30 minutes or less” on the top and “or your next one is free” at the bottom. Between the phrases, there is a painting of a Domino’s pizza box featuring a red and white domino on the left side and a blue rectangle with a white outline of a Minuteman Missile and the words Minuteman II on the right side. Protruding from the left wall is a solid steel yellow door stopper with black rubber bumper. Under the bumper is a red tool box (3 feet x 18 inches) on wheels that contained tools to open the door manually.
There are a set of double grey steel lockers on the right wall of the vestibule. A floor mat runs diagonally across the floor and is echoed by a yellow line demarcating the “no lone zone” area painted on the grey concrete floor.
Entering capsule The blast door is 3 feet thick and is painted grey. On the wall to the right-hand side of the entrance are red lettering that reads “No-lone zone two-man concept mandatory.” The floor in front of the tunnel is painted a dark grey and has black grippy strips running across it. Along the top of the entrance to the tunnel is black and yellow tape to warn of low clearance. The tunnel opening is size 3 x 5 feet.
Threshold Landing- Tunnel length 6 feet. The inside of the concrete structure is painted white. On either side of the entry to launch control are two large white shock cylinders. The shock absorbers suspend the silver acoustical box of launch control. Above the acoustical box is a yellow air intake duct. Numerous large black cables are attached to the acoustical box on the right side. Stainless steel railings line the side of the bridge going into the launch control center. The floor is steel, painted dark grey, and is striped with black grippy strips.
Deputy Console - The acoustical box is lined with electronic stacks. These stacks are in green cases 7 feet tall. Electronic drawer units have a grey outer face with black handles on each side. Drawers have knobs, switches, lights, and descriptions of electronic function. The ceiling is covered in fabric panels in a light mauve color. To the right immediately inside the door way is a compact restroom unit with a toilet and built-in sink below a mirror.
A red chair with a white pillowcase over the headrest is positioned in front of the deputy crew commander’s desk which is 3 and a half feet long. The red chair is fastened to a long sliding track. On top of the clear plastic desk cover is an open binder of launch control procedures. The communications console at the desk features a black phone receiver and is lined with red switches and clear buttons with blue labels. Above the desk is a red steel safe with two gold combination locks. White lettering on the safe reads “Entry restricted to MCC on duty.” Across from the deputy’s desk are blue velour curtains surrounding an enclosed bed with a green blanket and white tie-down straps. Commander’s Console Located against the back wall of the acoustical box is the crew commander’s desk (length 5 feet). There is also a red chair with white pillowcase over the headrest here. The lower portion of the desk is metal painted green. The commander’s desk top is light blue with white maps and written orders covered with clear plastic. On the desktop is an expanded communications console with black phone receiver, clear buttons, rotary phone dialer, and black knobs and buttons labeled with other missile flights. The blue missile status indicator panel is angled above the communications console of the desk. Above the indicator panel are grey speakers and control knobs for adjusting the HF radio antenna above ground. A grey metal filing cabinet is on the right-hand side of the desk.
Description
An audio described virtual tour of the Delta-01 Launch Control Facility. The only sound is a description of the rooms with basic context of what you see. A written transcript is available.
Duration
12 minutes, 7 seconds
Credit
NPS/Minuteman Missile National Historic Site
Date Created
08/01/2020
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