Eldorado Air Force Station | |
|---|---|
| Part of Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) | |
 Former PAVE PAWS array at Eldorado AFS | |
| Site information | |
| Type | Air Force Station |
| Controlled by | United States Air Force |
| Condition | Cold Standby |
| Location | |
 | |
| Coordinates | 30°58′44.68″N100°33′9.59″W / 30.9790778°N 100.5526639°W /30.9790778; -100.5526639 |
| Site history | |
| In use | 1987 - 1995 |
| Garrison information | |
| Garrison | 8th Missile Warning Squadron |
Eldorado Air Force Station located 35 miles (56 km) south ofSan Angelo, Texas was one of the four uniqueAN/FPS-115PAVE PAWS,early-warningphased-array radar systems. The8th Space Warning Squadron,21st Space Wing,Air Force Space Command operated atEldorado Air Force Station.
The Station was associated withGoodfellow Air Force Base, 35 miles (56 km) north, and was part of theNORAD at theCheyenne Mountain Complex command structure.[1][2]
Construction of Eldorado Air Force Station began shortly after site selection for the four PAVE PAWSarrays was completed in 1983, with the station achieving its Initial Operational Capacity (IOC) in May 1986 and becoming fully operational in 1987.[1][3]
As the likelihood of sea-based missile attacks from theGulf of Mexico decreased, and with the low probability of missile attacks from the South, theUnited States Air Force decided to close the southern-facingPAVE PAWS sites atRobins Air Force Base and Eldorado,Texas. After closure in 1995 one radar face from Eldorado AFS, along with another from the closed Robins Air Force Base site were moved toClear Air Force Station,Alaska as part of theBMEWS upgrade in 1998.[2][3]
As of 2006 the station was in mothballs awaiting possible future re-activation.[3]
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30°58′44.68″N100°33′9.59″W / 30.9790778°N 100.5526639°W /30.9790778; -100.5526639