Air Operations Center

This article is about Air Operations Center of the United States Air Force. Not to be confused with the NATO Combined Air Operations Centre.

601st Air Operations Center at Tyndall AFB, Florida
USAFCENT CAOC at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, 2009
A look inside the Gen. James H. Doolittle Combined Air Operations Center facility (612th Air Operations Center) at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., 2013

An Air Operations Center (AOC) is a type of command center used by the United States Air Force (USAF). It is the senior agency of the Air Force component commander to provide command and control of air operations.[1]

The United States Air Force employs two kinds of AOCs: regional AOCs utilizing the AN/USQ-163 Falconer weapon system that support geographic combatant commanders, and functional AOCs that support functional combatant commanders.[2] When there is more than one U.S. military service working in an AOC, such as when naval aviation from the U.S. Navy (USN) and/or the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) is incorporated, it is called a Joint Air Operations Center (JAOC). In cases of allied or coalition (multinational) operations in tandem with USAF or Joint air operations, the AOC is called a Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC).[1]

An AOC is the senior element of the Theater Air Control System (TACS). The Joint Force Commander (JFC) assigns a Joint Forces Air Component Commander (JFACC) to lead the AOC weapon system. If allied or coalition forces are part of the operation, the JFC and JFACC will be redesignated as the CFC and CFACC, respectively.

Quite often the Commander, Air Force Forces (COMAFFOR) is assigned the JFACC/CFACC position for planning and executing theater-wide air forces. If another service also provides a significant share of air forces, the Deputy JFACC/CFACC will typically be a senior flag officer from that service. For example, during Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, when USAF combat air forces (CAF) and mobility air forces (MAF) integrated extensive USN and USMC sea-based and land-based aviation and Royal Air Force (RAF) and Royal Navy / Fleet Air Arm aviation, the CFACC was an aeronautically rated USAF lieutenant general, assisted by an aeronautically designated USN rear admiral (upper half) as the Deputy CFACC, and an aeronautically rated RAF air commodore as the Senior British Officer (Air).

  1. ^ a b Air Force Doctrine Document 1-2, Air Force Glossary Archived 13 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine. 11 January 2007. Accessed 29 January 2011.
  2. ^ Air Force Doctrine Document 2, Operations and Organization Archived 13 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine. 3 April 2007. Accessed 29 January 2011.