Page 69 - Airforce magazine_June2017issue

Major Commands and Reserve Components
2017 USAF Almanac
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■ MAJOR COMMANDS As significant sub- divisions of the Air Force, majcoms conduct a considerable part of the service’s mission and are directly subordinate to Headquarters, USAF.
Major commands are organized on a func- tional basis in the US and on a geographic basis overseas. In addition to accomplishing designated portions of USAF’s worldwide activities, they organize, administer, equip, and train their subordinate elements.
Majcoms, in general, include the following organizational levels: numbered air force (NAF), wing, group, squadron, and flight. The majcom sits at the top of a skip-eche-
Ten Major Commands
Air Combat Command
Air Education and Training Command Air Force Global Strike Command Air Force Materiel Command
Air Force Reserve Command
Air Force Space Command
Air Force Special Operations Command Air Mobility Command
Pacific Air Forces
US Air Forces in Europe
Two Air Reserve Commands
Air Force Reserve Command Air National Guard
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is the com- mander of air force forces (COM- AFFOR) and may function as a theater joint force air and space component commander (JFACC) when required. A C-majcom has one or more component NAFs (C-NAFs) through which it presents its
forces to the combatant commander.
■ NUMBERED AIR FORCE A numbered air force, that level of command directly below a major command, provides operational leadership and supervision to its subordinate units: wings, groups, and squadrons. A C-NAF supports the commander of air forces at the operational and tactical level. USAF has designated some C-NAFs, rather than a majcom, as the Air Force component to a unified combatant command. In that role, the C-NAF functions at the strategic level as well as the operational and tactical levels and has a broader staff. (On the following pages, NAFs with “Air Forces” designations, such as Air Forces Southern, are C-NAFs.)
Personnel data on the following pages are as of Sept. 30, 2016.
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range of staff functions.
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group, and flight) are tactical, mission-centered echelons. These tactical echelons are designed to in- crease operational effectiveness without the burden of additional support staff functions.
There are two basic organizational schemes for Air Force major commands: unit-oriented organizations and major nonunit organizations. The standard unit- oriented scheme comprises majcom, NAF, wing, group, squadron, and flight levels. Alternatively, a majcom may oversee a center, directorate, division, branch, and section levels, or a combination thereof.
USAF has two types of major com- mands: lead majcom and component ma- jcom (C-majcom). Some major commands are both lead majcoms and C-majcoms.
■ COMPONENT MAJCOM A C-majcom is the USAF component to a unified combatant command. The commander of a C-majcom
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JUNE 2017 ★ WWW.AIRFORCEMAG.COM 67