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1 1 (October 26, 2021)

handle is hein.crs/govegse0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional Research Service Masad inforrning th legiatve debaesinctl914 Defense Primer: The United States Air Force When it was established as a separate service in 1947, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) was to be organized, trained, and equipped primarily for prompt and sustained offensive and defensive air operations ... necessary for the effective prosecution of war except as otherwise assigned. That statutory language remains almost identical today. Similarly, although the words used to describe its core missions have changed, space and cyberspace joined air as operational domains, and the means used to carry them out have evolved with technology, the USAF's missions themselves have remained remarkably constant. Table 1. Air Force Core Missions Source: U.S. Air Force, Global Vigilance, Global Reach, Global Power for America at http://www.af.mil/Airpower4America.aspx. Air and Space Supe rity The most familiar Air Force mission, air superiority, includes establishing and maintaining control of the skies over conflict areas, allowing U.S. forces to operate at the times and places of their choosing. The USAF points out that such control is almost taken as a given, as no enemy aircraft has killed U.S. ground troops since 1953. At the same time, potential adversary nations are creating and exporting advanced aircraft and anti-aircraft systems that could threaten U.S. air superiority, leading the USAF to invest in next-generation capabilities. USAF systems also provide direct support to ground forces, particularly in helping to identify and destroy time-critical targets. Space superiority involves securing U.S. space assets and the ability to maintain the navigational, communications, reconnaissance, and other capabilities U.S. space platforms provide. These systems enable all U.S. military services' current operating plans. These responsibilities are being migrated to the U.S. Space Force, now a separate service within the Air Force. Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) Gathering information, monitoring current or potential adversaries, and providing real-time data to forces in combat is a continuous and growing mission. The USAF provides ISR using manned and unmanned aircraft, space assets, and other technologies to provide policymakers and Updated October 26, 2021 warfighters that data where and when it is needed. Many Air Force assets designed for other purposes (fighters, tankers, etc.) also gather, disseminate, or perform other ISR functions. Rapid Global Mobility USAF mobility forces carry cargo and personnel around the world, enabling operations by all U.S. and many allied military services. Tanker aircraft make global deployments possible, and aeromedical transport makes timely evacuation and treatment of injured troops possible. USAF mobility forces are also used extensively for humanitarian relief operations. Global Strike 100% of the Earth is covered by air, and the USAF takes advantage of that to provide strike capability worldwide using bombers, special operations platforms, fighters, other aircraft, and missiles. Global strike includes the nuclear deterrent force. Two legs of the nuclear triad-bombers and land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs)-are Air Force missions. The Air Force is modernizing the bomber fleet, and a large-scale modernization of the ICBM force is also underway. Command and Control Controlling a global force-whether USAF, other services, or allied-requires access to reliable communications and information networks. The Air Force, through space platforms, space control operations, cyberspace operations, and other means, provides and defends those global communications networks. Each of these missions interacts with the others. Taken together, the Air Force sums up its core missions as providing Global Vigilance, Global Reach, and Global Power. Personnel To provide these capabilities, the Air Force requested end strength for FY2022 is 515,300 people: * 328,300 in the active Air Force, * 8,400 in the active Space Force, * 70,300 in the Air Force Reserve, and * 108,300 in the Air National Guard. Equipment The U.S. Air Force operates more than 5,800 aircraft: Air and Space Superiority Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance Rapid Global Mobility Global Strike Command and Control

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