| Twenty-Fifth Air Force | |
|---|---|
 Shield of the Twenty-Fifth Air Force | |
| Active | 29 September 2014 – 11 October 2019 (as Twenty-Fifth Air Force) 8 June 2007 – 29 September 2014 (as Air Force Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance Agency) 1 October 1993 – 8 June 2007 (as Air Intelligence Agency) 1 October 1991 – 1 October 1993 (as Air Force Intelligence Command) 1 August 1979 – 1 October 1991 (as Electronic Security Command) 20 October 1948 – 1 August 1979 (as United States Air Force Security Service) (77 years, 1 month)[1] |
| Country |  United States of America |
| Branch |  United States Air Force |
| Type | Numbered Air Force |
| Role | ProvideAir Combat Command and the Air Force with accurate and timelyIntelligence,Surveillance, andReconnaissance[2] |
| Part of |  Air Combat Command |
| Headquarters | Lackland Air Force Base,Joint Base San Antonio, Texas, U.S. |
| Motto | Freedom Through Vigilance |
| Decorations |  Air Force Organizational Excellence Award[1] |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Major General Timothy D. Haugh (Final Commander)[3] |
Twenty-Fifth Air Force (25 AF), was anumbered air force (NAF) within theUnited States Air Force (USAF), and served as the Air Force's premiermilitary intelligence organization. 25 AF was established on 29 September 2014[4] by redesignating theAir Force Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Agency (afield operating agency) under Headquarters, United States Air Force, to a numbered air force aligned underAir Combat Command. The USAF also realigned the9th Reconnaissance Wing and the55th Wing under the new NAF. It was headquartered atLackland Air Force Base, Texas.
Its primary mission was to provideintelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) products, applications, capabilities and resources, to include cyber and geospatial forces and expertise. Additionally, it is the service cryptologic component (SCC) responsible to theNational Security Agency andCentral Security Service for Air Forcecryptographic activities.[5]
25th AF was originally activated as theUnited States Air Force Security Service on 20 October 1948, atArlington Hall,Washington, D.C., with a mission ofcryptology andcommunications security.[6]
25th AF was last commanded byMajor General Timothy D. Haugh.[7]
On 11 October 2019, the 25th AF and the24th AF inactivated, and subsequently transferred their missions to the newly activated16th Air Force.
The organization organizes, trains, equips and presents assigned forces and capabilities to conduct intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance for combatant commanders and the nation. It also implements and oversees the execution of Air Force policies intended to expand ISR capabilities.
The organization comprises over 30,000 people at about 65 locations worldwide.
On 14 July 2014, theSecretary andChief of Staff of the Air Force announced that the Air Force ISR Agency would be reorganized into theTwenty-Fifth Air Force, anumbered air force assigned toAir Combat Command, on 1 October 2014.[8][9] The redesignation took place on 29 September 2014 atJoint Base San Antonio.
Five active duty wings and one center are assigned to the Twenty-Fifth Air Force.
25 AF is responsible for mission management and support of Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance operations.[5]
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Air Force Intelligence was first established as theUnited States Air Force Security Service (USAFSS) on 20 October 1948.[6] The service was headquartered atArlington Hall, a former girls school and the headquarters of the United States Army'sSignals Intelligence Service (SIS) cryptography effort duringWorld War II. The USAFSS was tasked with thecryptology andcommunications security missions of the newly formedUnited States Air Force. The USAFSS moved toBrooks Air Force Base, inSan Antonio, Texas, in April 1949, and then to "Security Hill" at nearbyKelly Air Force Base in August 1953.
During theKorean War, the USAFSS personnel providedUnited Nations Command units with intelligence on the movements of majorKorean People's Army forces fromManchuria toWonsan. USAFSS personnel receivedKorean Language training atYale University, and flew on theDouglas C-47 Skytrain to relay communications to allied ground forces on theKorean Peninsula.
During the early days of theCold War, USAFSS crews flew missions on several aircraft converted for intelligence missions, including theBoeing B-29 Superfortress, theLockheed C-130A-II Dreamboat,[11] and theStrategic Air Command'sBoeing RB-50 Superfortress andBoeing RC-135. The USAFSS established communications stations in Germany, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Scotland, and later installedAN/FLR-9 "Elephant Cage" radar sites in Alaska, England, Italy, Japan, the Philippines, and Turkey.
The USAFSS became involved in theVietnam War when thePacific Air Forces asked it to establish an Air Force Special Security Office atTan Son Nhut Airport nearSaigon in 1961. By the following year, a USAFSS squadron and three subordinate detachments were operating in Vietnam and Thailand, and USAFSS personnel supportedCollege Eye threat warning operations. USAFSS crews also flew onDouglas EC-47 Skytrain missions to search for aircrew shot down in North Vietnam; RC-130BII Hercules Airborne Communications Reconnaissance Program (ACRP)SIGINT platforms launched out of Thailand and Da Nang Air Base, Viet Nam; and, commencing in 1967, SAC RC-135s deployed to and operating out ofKadena Air Base, Okinawa.
On 1 August 1979, the Air Force redesignated the USAFSS as theElectronic Security Command (ESC), reflecting the organization's additional mission of improving the Air Force's use ofelectronic warfare technology in combat. In 1985, the Air Force tasked ESC with computer security, in addition to its intelligence and electronic warfare missions.
ESC provided intelligence support to theUnited States invasion of Panama in 1989 and were among the first U.S. military personnel to arrive inSaudi Arabia for theGulf War. During that conflict, ESC personnel operated at three different locations in Saudi Arabia and Turkey.
On 1 October 1991, the Air Force redesignated ESC as theAir Force Intelligence Command (AFIC) and consolidated Air Force intelligence functions and resources into a single command. AFIC merged ESC with the Air Force Foreign Technology Center atWright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, the Air Special Activities Center atFort Belvoir, Virginia, and elements of the Air Force Intelligence Agency, Washington, D.C. With the combined missions, AFIC was tasked with intelligence, security, electronic combat, foreign technology, and treaty monitoring.
The organization was redesignated again when it became theAir Intelligence Agency on 1 October 1993. During the 1990s, AIA personnel deployed to supportNATO operations during theBosnian War andKosovo War, and as part of OperationsSouthern Watch andNorthern Watch in Southwest Asia.
In February 2001, the Air Force assigned AIA toAir Combat Command, where it provided support to combat operations in thewar on terror, theWar in Afghanistan, and theIraq War.
In August 2006, GeneralT. Michael Moseley, theChief of Staff of the United States Air Force, directed that the Air Force intelligence efforts stress intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities. AIA was eventually redesignated theAir Force ISR Agency (AFISRA) on 8 June 2007. The organization change included transforming AFISRA into a field operating agency and reassigning it from Air Combat Command to Headquarters Air Force. With the change, AFISRA reported to the Air Force Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance.
Beginning in 2009, AFISRA personnel deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan to supportMC-12W as part of Project Liberty.
| No. | Commander | Term | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portrait | Name | Took office | Left office | Term length | |
| 1 |  | Major General John N.T. Shanahan | 29 September 2014 | 3 August 2015 | 308 days |
| 2 | .jpg) | Major General Bradford J. Shwedo | 3 August 2015 | 31 May 2017 | 1 year, 301 days |
| 3 | .jpg) | Major General Mary F. O’Brien | 31 May 2017 | 29 August 2019 | 2 years, 90 days |
| 4 | .jpg) | Major General Timothy D. Haugh | 29 August 2019 | 11 October 2019 | 43 days |
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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