In 1949, TAC began testing the Martin B-61, later redesignated as TM-61 Matador surface-to-surface cruise missile at Holloman AFB, New Mexico. The initial flight ended in a crash, but the second launch was successful and outran the chase aircraft. Testing continued with launches of 46 missiles at both Holloman AFB and the Long Range Proving Ground at Cape Canaveral, Florida, and in March 1954 the first operational missile squadron in the U.S. Air Force, the 1st Pilotless Bomber Squadron, was deployed to Bitburg Air Base, Germany. Launches at Holloman and Cape Canaveral continued until 1963, at which time the missile was redesignated again as the MGM-1 Matador.