United States Air Force Warfare Center

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name= United States Air Force Warfare Center


caption= Emblem of the United States Air Force Warfare Center
dates= 1966-Present
country= United States
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branch= United States Air Force
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role= Warfare Training
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command_structure= Air Combat Command
garrison= Nellis AFB, Nevada
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battle_honours=The United States Air Force Warfare Center (USAFWC) at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, reports directly to Air Combat Command. The Center was founded 1 Sep 1966, as the U.S. Air Force Tactical Fighter Weapons Center. It was renamed the U.S. Air Force Warfare Center in 2005. [http://www.nellis.af.mil/library/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=4082 U.S. Air Force Warfare Center Fact Sheet] ]

Overview

The United States Air Force Warfare Center manages advanced pilot training and integrates many of the Air Force's test and evaluation requirements. It was established in 1966 as the USAF Tactical Fighter Weapons Center which concentrated on the development of forces and weapons systems that were specifically geared to tactical air operations in conventional (non-nuclear) war and contingencies. It continued to perform this mission for nearly thirty years, undergoing several name changes in the 1990s. In 1991, the center became the USAF Fighter Weapons Center, and then the USAF Weapons and Tactics Center in 1992. [http://www.nellis.af.mil/library/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=4082 U.S. Air Force Warfare Center Fact Sheet] ]

The Air Warfare Center uses the lands on Nellis Air Force Range Complex - which occupies about three million acres of land, the largest such range in the United States, and another five-million-acre military operating area which is shared with civilian aircraft. The center also uses Eglin AFB, FL, range, which adds even greater depth to the center's capabilities, providing over water and additional electronic expertise to the center. [http://www.nellis.af.mil/library/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=4082 U.S. Air Force Warfare Center Fact Sheet] ]

The Air Warfare Center oversees operations of the 57th Wing, the 98th Range and 99th Air Base Wings at Nellis AFB, Nevada; the the 53rd Wing at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, and the 505th Command and Control Wing at Hurlburt Field, Florida. [http://www.nellis.af.mil/library/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=4082 U.S. Air Force Warfare Center Fact Sheet] ]

Units

* 53d Wing: The 53d Wing serves as the focal point for the combat air forces in electronic combat, armament and avionics, chemical defense, reconnaissance, command and control, and aircrew training devices.
* 57th Wing: The 57th Wing is responsible for a variety of activities, such as Red Flag, which provides realistic training in a combined air, ground and electronic threat environment for U.S. and allied forces.
* 98th Range Wing: The 98th Range Wing provides command and control of the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR).
* 99th Air Base Wing: The 99th Air Base Wing is the host wing at Nellis AFB and manages the day-to-day operations of the base.
* 505th Command and Control Wing: The 505 CCW is dedicated to improving warfighter readiness through integrated training, tactics, and testing for operational-level command and control of air, space, and cyber power. It hosts the Air Force's only Air Operations Center Formal Training Unit (FTU). [http://www.nellis.af.mil/library/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=4082 U.S. Air Force Warfare Center Fact Sheet] ]

History

The Vietnam War had begun by the mid 1960s, and Tactical Air Command needed to improve technical and operational skills for the widening war. TAC established the Tactical Fighter Weapons Center at Nellis Air Force Base, NV in 1966, for fighter operations. Nellis had been the "Home of the Fighter Pilot" since the Korean War days of the early 1950s, and conducted postgraduate fighter training and operational testing and evaluation of fighter weapons systems. Additionally, the Nellis range, largest in the free world, complemented the new Center's mission.

Lineage

* Established as the USAF Tactical Fighter Weapons Center in 1966: Resesignated: USAF Fighter Weapons Center in 1991: Resesignated: USAF Weapons and Tactics Center in 1992: Redesignated: USAF Warfare Center in 2005.

Assignments

* Tactical Air Command, 1966 -1992
* Air Combat Command, 1992 - Present

Units Assigned

Operational units assigned to the USAFWC have been: [http://www.afhra.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=9750 U.S. Air Force Historical Research Agency, 57th Wing] ]

Wing
* 4545th Fighter Warfare Wing, 1966 - 22 Aug 1969
* 57th Fighter Weapons Wing, 22 Aug 1969 - 1 Apr 1977: Redesignated: 57 Tactical Training Wing, 1 Apr 1977 - 1 Mar 1980: Redesignated: 57 Fighter Wing, 1 Oct 1991 - 15 Jun 1993: Redesignated: 57 Wing, 15 Jun 1993 - Present

Groups
* 57 Fighter 1 Nov 1991-Present
* 57 Test: 1 Nov 1991-1 Oct 1996
* 4440 Tactical Fighter Training (Red Flag): Attached 1 Oct 1979-28 Feb 1980: Assigned 1 Mar 1980-1 Nov 1991
* 4443 Tactical Training: 26 Jan 1990-1 Nov 1991

Squadrons
* 64 Fighter Weapons (later, 64 Tactical Fighter Training Aggressor; 64 Aggressor): 15 Oct 1972-5 Oct 1990.
* 65 Fighter Weapons (later, 65 Tactical Fighter Training Aggressor; 65 Aggressor): 15 Oct 1969-7 Apr 1989.
* 66 Fighter Weapons: 15 Oct 1969-30 Dec 1981
* 414 Fighter Weapons: 15 Oct 1969-30 Dec 1981
* 422 Fighter Weapons (later, 422 Test and Evaluation): 15 Oct 1969-1 Nov 1991
* 431 Fighter Weapons (later, 431 Test and Evaluation): 1 Oct 1980-1 Nov 1991
* 433 Fighter Weapons: 1 Oct 1976-30 Dec 1981
* 4460 Helicopter: 1 Nov 1983-1 Jun 1985
* 4477 Test and Evaluation Flight (later, 4477 Test and Evaluation Squadron): 1 Apr 1977-15 Jul 1990
* USAF Air Demonstration: 15 Feb 1974-Present

Aircraft Flown

* A-7 Corsair II, 1969-1975
* F-4 Phantom II, 1969-1985, 1992-Present: F-4G Wild Weasel, 1993-1995
* F-100 Super Sabre, 1969
* F-105 Thunderchief, 1969-1975
* General Dynamics F-111, 1969-1995
* T-38 Talon, 1972-1990
* Northrop F-5, 1975-1989
* F-15 Eagle, 1976-Present
* A-10 Thunderbolt II, 1977-Present
* F-16 Fighting Falcon, 1980-Present
* UH-1 Iroquois, 1981-1985
* B-1 Lancer, 1993-1999
* B-52 Stratofortress, 1993-1999
* MQ-1 Predator, 1995-Presentsource [http://www.afhra.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=9750 U.S. Air Force Historical Research Agency, 57th Wing] ]

References

External links