Vandenberg Air Force Base present . Today, Vandenberg stands as the third-largest Air Force base after Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, and Edwards Air Force Base in California. On 4 October 1958, Cooke AFB was renamed Vandenberg AFB, in honor of General Vandenberg, the Air Force's second Chief of Staff. The transition from Army camp to missile base solidified on 15 December 1958 when Vandenberg AFB successfully launched its first missile, a PGM-17 Thor IRBM (Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile) The launch from Vandenberg inaugurated the intermediate-range ballistic missile portion of the Pacific Missile Range and was fired by a crew from the 1st
Edwards Air Force Base Test Wing. They are known as Associate Units. These units do everything from providing an on-base grocery store to testing state-of-the-art rockets. Edwards is also home to several other units from DOD, Air Force, Army, Navy, FAA, USPS and many companies that support the primary mission or the personnel stationed there. The Main Base is also the home of the Benefield Anechoic Facility (BAF), an electromagnetic and radio frequency testing building. It is also home to the Air Force Flight Test Center Museum, which has over 15 aircraft on display. The North Base is located at the North-West corner of