Missile site 571-7 at the Titan Missile is the sole remaining Titan II Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) complex of the 54 that were "on alert" during the Cold War between 1963 and 1987. It was once a part of the 571st Strategic Missile Squadron (SMS), 390th Strategic Missile Wing (SMW), Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, and first came on alert on July 15, 1963.The Titan II was a second-generation, 2-stage, silo-stored, silo-launched, liquid propelled intercontinental ballistic missile, or ICBM. It was stored in a hardened silo with its liquid propellant on board, so that it was ready to launch at all times. An ICBM is a missile specifically designed to carry a nuclear warhead or bomb from one continent to another. They are called ballistic because, like the shell from a gun, they receive a brief but powerful initial push from a rocket motor, then follow a ballistic free-flight trajectory to the target.The concept for the Titan II was developed in the late 1950's and construction of the launch complexes began in December of 1960. The first missile was installed in December of 1962 and the first unit was turned over to the Strategic Air Command (SAC) on March 31, 1963. TheTitan II was designed for one purpose, to carry a nuclear warhead from the United States to another continent. It was built, however, for another purpose altogether. And that purpose was that the Titan II would never launch at all. The primary mission of the Titan II was “Peace Through Deterrence.” America’s strategy was to prevent other countries from ever attacking it with nuclear weapons by demonstrating that it had the ability to retaliate against a nuclear strike to such a degree that the attacking country would be virtually destroyed, even if that country launched its weapons first. For 24 years, nearly a quarter of a century, Titan II missiles stood guard over America, full filling this mission.

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