Inside the Bunker: The Americans Who Sit Next to Nuclear Launch Keys Every Day

How do nuclear missile crews eat, sleep and survive 24 hours locked 60 feet underground, next to the launch keys of 10 nuclear missiles? We go inside a U.S. Air Force launch control center to see what life is really like for the missileers who stand alert under the Great Plains. America keeps about 400 Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles on alert, run from Malmstrom, Minot and F.E. Warren Air Force Bases. Two officers at a time sit in a capsule suspended on shock absorbers behind an 8-ton blast door. In this video, we explain how a 24-hour alert works, what crews eat (yes, they can order pizza), how they sleep, why there is no big red button, how the two-key rule works, the 8-inch floppy disks that were only retired in 2019, the 2014 cheating scandal, the Missile Community Cancer Study, and the future Sentinel missile. CHAPTERS 0:00 Intro 0:41 Sixty feet down 1:45 A 24-hour shift 2:45 Food from upstairs 3:45 The long night 4:45 Two keys 5:46 Under pressure 6:49 The order that never comes IN THIS VIDEO Inside a Minuteman III launch control center The 24-hour alert and the missile alert facility above it Food, sleep and boredom 60 feet underground How a nuclear launch order works: two keys, two crews Test launches from Vandenberg Pressure, health concerns and the future of the ICBM force SOURCES Launch control center, blast door, 24-hour alerts, food and quotes: NPR, Welcome to the Nuclear Command Bunker and How to Order Pizza from a Nuclear Command Bunker (July 2014) Capsule description and quotes: F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Life and work 80 feet below ground 36-hour alerts, reading instead of electronics: Cowboy State Daily (September 2023) Launch votes and two-crew rule: 90th Missile Wing, The myth of the big red button 8-inch floppy disks retired in 2019: U.S. Strategic Command via C4ISRNET / Engadget (October 2019) 2014 cheating scandal: Military.com (January 2014) Missile Community Cancer Study: Air Force Global Strike Command; Stars and Stripes (October 2025) Minuteman III and Sentinel: Congressional Research Service (May 2026) November 2025 test launch: Air Force Global Strike Command FOOTAGE U.S. Department of War visual information via DVIDS (public domain). The appearance of U.S. Department of War (DoW) visual information does not imply or constitute DoW endorsement. Some shots are archive, training-simulator or illustrative footage and are labeled on screen. Maps and graphics are original creations by Defense Uncovered. Defense Uncovered is an independent channel, not affiliated with or endorsed by any government or armed forces. We explain how military power works. No politics, no sides. #ICBM #USAirForce #DefenseUncovered