On Oct. 10, 1958, the Air Force announced its selection of Boeing as assembly and test contractor for the Minuteman missile, beginning one of the most complex, largest and longest running programs in Boeing history. At its peak, it would employ 39,700 people located at Boeing sites in Seattle and at the missile final assembly site at Plant 77 in Ogden, Utah.

Boeing teamed with nine other industry contractors — including North American Aviation’s Autonetics Division, based in Anaheim, Calif. — to build, test and deploy the missiles. In 1996, Autonetics joined The Boeing Company as part of the Boeing acquisition of Rockwell International’s aerospace and defense businesses.

Minuteman III missiles are part of the United States Strategic Command that also includes the Navy’s Ohio class fleet of ballistic missile submarines and Air Force’s B-2 and B-52 bombers.

The Minuteman program established Boeing as a leader in large-scale system integration. Today, the combined heritage of the Minuteman programs of Boeing and Autonetics continues as Boeing Strategic Missile Systems (SMS), supporting the Air Force with system evaluation, testing, training and modernization.