| Combat Action Medal | |
|---|---|
 Combat Action Medal | |
| Type | Medal (Service/Achievement)[1] |
| Awarded for | Active participation in ground or air combat[1] |
| Presented by | United States Department of the Air Force[2] |
| Eligibility | Airmen and guardians in the grades of E-1 through O-6 |
| Status | Currently awarded |
| Established | 15 March 2007 |
| First award | 12 June 2007 (retroactive to 11 September 2001) |
 | |
| Precedence | |
| Next (higher) | Service achievement medals[3] |
| Equivalent | Naval Service:Navy Combat Action Ribbon Coast Guard:Coast Guard Combat Action Ribbon |
| Next (lower) | Presidential Unit Citation[3] |
| Related | Combat Infantryman Badge (U.S. Army Infantry andSpecial Forces equivalent) Combat Medical Badge(U.S. Army Medical Department equivalent) Combat Action Badge (U.S. Army other branch equivalent) |
TheCombat Action Medal (CAM)[4] isa decoration of theUnited States Air Force andUnited States Space Force to recognize airmen and guardians for active participation in ground or air combat.
The CAM was first awarded on June 12, 2007 as the Air Force Combat Action Medal, to six airmen who were engaged in air or ground combat off base in a combat zone duringOperation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan, October 7, 2001 – December 28, 2015) orOperation Iraqi Freedom (Iraq, March 19, 2003 – September 1, 2010).[5][6] The medal is retroactive fromSeptember 11, 2001 forward to a date to be determined and may be awarded posthumously.
On 16 November 2020, the Air Force Combat Action Medal was renamed to the Combat Action Medal by the Secretary of the Air Force.[7]
For an airman or guardian to wear the CAM, members must provide proper documentation to their commander which includes a narrative explanation of the airman or guardian's involvement in combat activities to the first O-6 (Colonel) in their operationalchain of command on an AF Form 3994.[8] The application will be processed through the chain of command and eventually be approved or disapproved by the Commander of Air Force Forces (COMAFFOR).[9]
Nomination of the award of the CAM will be restricted to members of the U.S. Armed Forces who on or after September 11, 2001, were under any of the following conditions:[10]
Retroactive awards prior to September 11, 2001, are not authorized.
It is worn after theAir and Space Achievement Medal and before theAir Force Presidential Unit Citation.
The CAM may be awarded to members from the other Armed Forces and foreign military members serving in a U.S. Air Force or U.S. Space Force unit, provided they meet the criteria for the award.[1]
According to USAF Memo, June 25, 2015, Air Force Instruction 36–2803, December 18, 2013 (Change 1, June 22, 2015):AFCAM,Authorized Device: A gold star will be worn to recognize subsequent operations when approved by the Chief of Staff of the Air Force (5.3.1.7., pages 148-49).[11] However, in AFI 36-2903, gold stars are not included in the AF list of authorized ribbon devices (11.4, page 224);service/campaign stars (3⁄16" bronze/silver star) are the only star devices authorized for wear. Also, no ribbon device is authorized for wear in AFI 36-2803 to denote subsequent awards of the CAM, which normally would beoak leaf clusters. The Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard authorizes a5⁄16" gold star to denote subsequent awards of specific decorations and a3⁄16" bronze service star is worn on theGlobal War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal to denote a subsequent operation.[12]
In conjunction with theArmy Institute of Heraldry, the medal was designed by Susan Gamble, a professional artist and Master Designer for theU.S. Mint, and wife of Mike Gamble, an Air Force colonel. She was quoted byThe Washington Post as saying, "It was just a real pleasure to give this back to the Air Force that's been part of my life."[13]
Gamble based the silver medal's design and ribbon color (scarlet with ten yellow stripes) from the circular insignia[14] painted on planes which were piloted by Brigadier GeneralWilliam "Billy" Mitchell, including a French-builtSPAD XVI (SPAD 16)fighter aircraft he piloted inFrance duringWorld War I.[15] His SPAD 16 (single-engine, two-seat, reconnaissance and bomber aircraft) is currently displayed at theSmithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.[16] Mitchell is generally known as the father of the U.S. Air Force.[17]
A laurel wreath surrounds the medal'seagle emblem executed in a simple, linearArt Deco style. The eagle with anational flag shield with thirteen perpendicular stripes on its breast faces right, over the right talon clutching arrows (represents the power of war), to reflect that this is a combat medal. The left talon clutches an olive branch (represents the power of peace). The eagle which symbolizes Mitchell's military rank insignia ofcolonel,[14] has above it a five-pointed star which represents Mitchell's wartime promotion to the temporary rank ofbrigadier general in October, 1918. The reverse side of the medal contains two rows of words written on a scroll at the center of the eagle, "U.S. Air Force" and "Combat Action".
The ribbon's diagonal stripes at first could not be manufactured in the United States; but military medals cannot be manufactured outside the U.S. This design problem was resolved when a mill inBally, Pennsylvania, Bally Ribbon Mills, bought a new loom specifically to weave the diagonal stripe. ARhode Island firm,Ira Green Inc. in Providence, made the metal parts.[13] The CAM is the only U.S. military award to have a diagonally patterned ribbon, much like the BritishDistinguished Flying Cross and NetherlandsAirman's Cross. The CAM service ribbon has five stripes.
The CAM was presented for the first time to seven airmen (six men and one woman) by theAir Force Chief of Staff, GeneralT. Michael Moseley (now retired), at theU.S. Air Force Memorial inArlington, Virginia:[5][13] and 819RED HORSE (Airfields Shop)Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana
The CAM was presented posthumously to:
Media related toAir Force Combat action Medal at Wikimedia Commons
| Decorations | |
|---|---|
| Unit awards | |
| Service medals | |
| Service ribbons | |
