 Seal of the U.S. Department of the Air Force | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | September 18, 1947; 78 years ago (1947-09-18) |
| Preceding agency | |
| Headquarters | The Pentagon,Arlington County, Virginia, U.S. |
| Employees | 330,159Regular Air Force 151,360Civilians 68,872Air Force Reserve 94,753Air National Guard |
| Annual budget | $222.3B (FY2022) |
| Agency executives | |
| Parent agency | U.S. Department of Defense |
| Child agencies | |
TheUnited States Department of the Air Force (DAF) is one of the three military departments within theDepartment of Defense of the United States of America. The Department of the Air Force was formed on September 18, 1947, per theNational Security Act of 1947 (codified intoTitle 10 of the United States Code) and it is the military department within which theUnited States Air Force and theUnited States Space Force are organized.
The Department of the Air Force is headed by thesecretary of the Air Force (SAF/OS), a civilian, who has the authority to conduct all of its affairs, subject to the authority, direction and control of thesecretary of defense. The secretary of the Air Force's principal deputy is theunder secretary of the Air Force (SAF/US). Their senior staff assistants in theOffice of the Secretary of the Air Force are fiveassistant secretaries foracquisition, technology & logistics;financial management & comptroller;installations, environment & energy;manpower & reserve affairs; andspace acquisition & integration and ageneral counsel. The highest-ranking military officers in the department, and senior military advisers to the secretary, are thechief of staff of the Air Force andchief of space operations.
By direction of the secretary of defense, the secretary of the Air Force assigns Air Force and Space Force units – apart from those units performing duties enumerated in10 U.S.C. § 9013 unless otherwise directed – to thecombatant commands. Only the secretary of defense and the president have the authority to approve a transfer of forces between combatant commands.[1]
In 1981, CongressmanKen Kramer introduced legislation to rename the Department of the Air Force as the Department of the Aerospace Force, along with renaming theUnited States Air Force as the United States Aerospace Force, to reorient the service and department from anair force to an aerospace force. The legislation would also have established aspace command within the Aerospace Force and renamed theAir National Guard to the Aerospace National Guard. The legislation was cosponsored by RepresentativesG. William Whitehurst,Ike Skelton, andRobin Beard of theUnited States House Committee on Armed Services.[2] Although the legislation was supported by GeneralJames E. Hill, who commandedNorth American Aerospace Defense Command andAerospace Defense Command, the Air Force did not support the name change and the legislation did not pass.[3]
Following theUnited States Space Force's establishment, calls have been made for the Department of the Air Force to rename itself theDepartment of the Air and Space Forces to acknowledge the Space Force, similar to calls made for theDepartment of the Navy to rename itself the Department of the Navy and Marine Corps.SpaceNews reported that a proposed name change was considered in 2018, and in 2019 theAir Force Association also called for renaming the department.[4][5] In 2022, the Air Force Association renamed itself theAir & Space Forces Association, internally acting on its proposal to reflect the Space Force in the organization's name.[6] In a 2021 article in theSpace Force Journal, two Space Force officers also proposed a name change for the department.[7]
Congress has also proposed a variety of name changes within the Department of the Air Force to recognize the Space Force's establishment, including a 2022 proposal by the U.S. Senate to rename the Air National Guard to the Air and Space National Guard and 2020 proposal to rename theAirman's Medal the Air and Space Force Medal, mirroring theNavy and Marine Corps Medal.[8][9]
The Department of the Air Force is divided into theOffice of the Secretary of the Air Force, which is led by theUnited States secretary of the Air Force, theAir Staff which is led by thechief of staff of the Air Force, and theSpace Staff which is led by thechief of space operations.[10]
The Department of the Air Force consists of theUnited States Air Force,United States Space Force, andAir Force Civilian Service.
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Office of the Secretary of the Air Force
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TheDepartment of Defense claims the 2019 Department of the Air Force budget is as follows:[11]
| Air Force Base + OCO + Emergency | FY 2018 | FY 2019 Request | Delta FY19 - FY18 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Military Personnel | 35,607,366 | 38,954,308 | +3,346,942 |
| Operation and Maintenance | 58,191,005 | 61,407,391 | +3,216,386 |
| Procurement | 45,654,160 | 50,541,275 | +4,887,115 |
| RDT&E | 28,198,426 | 40,492,614 | +12,294,188 |
| Military Construction | 2,191,451 | 2,303,699 | +112,248 |
| Family Housing | 333,500 | 395,720 | +62,220 |
| Revolving and Management Funds | 63,533 | 77,644 | +14,111 |
| Total | 170,239,441 | 194,172,651 | +23,933,210 |
*$ in thousands
Numbers May Not Add Due to Rounding
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