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United States Army Air Forces

Name: United States Army Air Forces
Dates:
1941 - 1947 (Life/Active Dates)
Biography/History: The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the military aviation service of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force. The AAF was a component of the United States Army, which in 1942 was divided functionally by executive order into three autonomous forces: the Army Ground Forces, the Services of Supply (which in 1943 became the Army Service Forces), and the AAF. Each of these forces had a commanding general who reported directly to the Chief of Staff of the United States Army. The AAF administered all parts of military aviation formerly distributed among the Army Air Corps, General Headquarters Air Force, and ground forces corps area commanders, and thus became the first air organization of the U.S. Army to control its own installations and support personnel. In practice, the AAF was virtually autonomous inside the Army. The Air Corps became the Army Air Forces in June 1941 to provide the air arm a greater autonomy in which to expand more efficiently, and to provide a structure for the additional command echelons required by a vastly increased force. Although other nations already had separate air forces independent of the army or navy, the AAF remained a part of the United States Army until the independent United States Air Force came into being in September 1947.
Related Participants:
Related Objects:
3400.306 (Matchbook, Army Air Base Matchbook)