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Two-star Maj. Gen. Michael Carey commanded a total of 450 missiles and 9,600 people at locations across the U.S. as head of the 20th Air Force and Task Force 214.
Gen. James Kowalski, the commander of the Air Force Global Strike Command, made the decision following an inspector general's office investigation into "Carey's behavior during a temporary duty assignment."
In August the 341st Missile Wing at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont. failed a safety and security inspection after personnel made "tactical-level errors" during an exercise.
In May, officials at the 91st Missile Wing at Minot Air Force Base, N.D., relieved 19 missile officers after the wing was rated "unsatisfactory" in one part of an inspection.
"We are, in fact, in a crisis right now," the group's deputy commander, Lt. Col. Jay Folds, wrote in an internal email at the time.