The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. All six armed services are among the eight uniformed services of the United States.
The secretary of the Air Force, sometimes referred to as the secretary of the Department of the Air Force, is the head of the Department of the Air Force and the service secretary for the United States Air Force and United States Space Force. The secretary of the Air Force is a civilian appointed by the president, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The secretary reports to the secretary of defense and/or the deputy secretary of defense, and is by statute responsible for and has the authority to conduct all the affairs of the Department of the Air Force.
The United States Department of the Air Force (DAF) is one of the three military departments within the Department of Defense of the United States of America. The Department of the Air Force was formed on September 18, 1947, per the National Security Act of 1947 and it is the military department within which the United States Air Force and the United States Space Force are organized.
The Air Staff is one of the Department of the Air Force's two statutorily designated headquarters staffs: the other staff is the Office of the Secretary of the Air Force, also known as the Secretariat. The Air Staff is headed by the Chief of Staff of the Air Force. The Air Staff is primarily composed of uniformed U.S. Air Force officials who assist the Chief of Staff in carrying out his dual-hatted role: as the principal military advisor to the Secretary of the Air Force, and as a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Edward "Pete" Cleveland Aldridge Jr. is an aerospace engineer and former government official in the U.S. Defense Department. He was also selected as a payload specialist for the Space Shuttle mission STS-62-A, scheduled to launch in July 1986. The mission was canceled after the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster in January 1986, and Aldridge never flew.
Michael Walter Wynne is an American politician and business executive and was the 21st United States Secretary of the Air Force. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates asked for and received his resignation on June 5, 2008, in the wake of the 2007 United States Air Force nuclear weapons incident and the mistaken shipment of Minuteman III parts to Taiwan in 2006, followed by an investigation by and a critical report from Admiral Kirkland H. Donald regarding the Minuteman incident.
A program executive officer, or PEO, is one of a few key individuals in the United States military acquisition process. As can be seen from the examples below, a program executive officer may be responsible for a specific program, or for an entire portfolio of similar programs.
The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, or USD(A&S), is the Principal Staff Assistant (PSA) and advisor to the Secretary of Defense for all matters relating to acquisition and sustainment in the Department of Defense. This includes the DoD Acquisition System; system design and development; production; logistics and distribution; installation maintenance, management, and resilience; military construction; procurement of goods and services; material readiness; maintenance; environment and energy resilience ; utilities; business management modernization; International Armaments Cooperation, Cooperative Acquisition and International Agreements, Promoting exportability of military components to allies and partners; nuclear, chemical and biological defense programs; and nuclear command, control, and communications.
The Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (SAF/AQ) is a civilian position in the Department of the Air Force that is appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate. This position is established under Title 10 US Code Section 9016 and is one of five Assistant Secretary positions under the Secretary of the Air Force. The Assistant Secretary reports to the Secretary of the Air Force.
The Under Secretary of the Air Force, sometimes referred to as the Under Secretary of the Department of the Air Force, is the second-highest ranking civilian official in the Department of the Air Force of the United States of America, serving directly under the Secretary of the Air Force. In the absence of the Secretary, the Under Secretary exercises all the powers and duties of the Secretary and serves as Acting Secretary when the position of Secretary is vacant. The Under Secretary of the Air Force is appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.
The Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, abbreviated USD (R&E), is a senior official of the United States Department of Defense. The USD (R&E) is charged with the development and oversight of technology strategy for the DoD. The post has at various times had the titles Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, or Director of Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E). The latter title has itself historically varied between the rank of under secretary and that of assistant secretary.
The Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical & Biological Defense Programs, or ASD(NCB), is the principal adviser to the Secretary of Defense, Deputy Secretary of Defense and the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment on policy and plans for nuclear, chemical, and biological defense programs.
The Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management and Comptroller (SAF/FM) is a civilian official in the United States Department of the Air Force.
Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Operational Energy) (abbreviated SAF/IEN) is the title of a civilian office in the United States Department of the Air Force, with its main offices at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. SAF/IEN falls under the Assistant Secretary of the United States Air Force for Installations, Environment, and Energy (SAF/IE), and assists the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, the Under Secretary of the Air Force, and the Secretary of the Air Force in drafting energy policy, supporting optimization initiatives, and championing projects related to operational energy (aviation fuel) across the US Air Force. Established in 2010, SAF/IEN focuses on fuel supply and logistics, aerodynamic drag reduction, propulsion efficiency, software development, optimized planning, and fuel data capture.
The Inspector General of the Department of the Air Force is responsible for conducting investigations and inspections as directed by the Secretary of the Air Force, Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force, and Chief of Space Operations. The position was originally established after World War II as The Air Inspector, which was carried over from the United States Army Air Forces. The current mission of the Inspector General is prescribed by Title 10 and Title 32 of the United States Code to develop United States Air Force (USAF) and United States Space Force (USSF) policy to assess readiness, discipline and efficiency with a vision to help shape senior leader decisions affecting the readiness of the USAF and USSF to strengthen the nation's defense.
Donna D. Shipton is a United States Air Force lieutenant general who serves as the military deputy to the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics. She previously served as the deputy director and commander of the Space Force Element to the National Reconnaissance Office.
The Assistant Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force was a position in the United States Air Force held by a lieutenant general who also served as the director of the Air Staff. The holder of the position oversees the administration and organization of the Air Staff, which develops policies, plans and programs; establishes requirements; and provides resources to support the Air Force's mission. He also serves as Deputy Chairman of the Air Force Council, and is the Air Force accreditation official for the international Corps of Air Attachés.
Kyle J. Kremer is a retired United States Air Force major general who last served as the Director of Strategic Plans, Requirements and Programs of the Air Mobility Command. Previously, he was the Director of Global Reach Programs of the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics.
Andrew Philip Hunter is an American defense official and policy analyst who is the 14th and current assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, technology and logistics (SAF/AQ). Prior to becoming an Air Force Assistant Secretary, he was the director of the defense industrial initiatives group at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Before joining CSIS, Hunter spent 15 years as a staffer in the U.S. House of Representatives, and as a senior procurement official at the Department of Defense during the Obama administration.
A deputy chief of space operations is a senior leadership position in the United States Space Force. There are four deputy chiefs of space operations in the Space Force, staffed either by a lieutenant general or a senior executive service personnel. They are the service's equivalent to the Army's and Air Force's deputy chiefs of staff, the Marine Corps' deputy commandants, and the Navy's deputy chiefs of naval operations. They are part of the Office of the Chief of Space Operations and hold office at the Pentagon.
