Northwest African Air Service Command

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The Northwest African Air Service Command (NAASC) was a sub-command of the Northwest African Air Forces which itself was a sub-command of the Mediterranean Air Command (MAC). These new Allied air force organizations were created at the Casablanca Conference in January 1943 to promote cooperation between the British Royal Air Force (RAF), the American United States Army Air Force (USAAF), and their respective ground and naval forces in the North African and Mediterranean Theater of Operations (MTO). [1] [2] Effective March 4, 1943, Brigadier General Delmar Dunton became the commander of NAASC which consisted of service units from the United States Army 12th Air Force Service Command which Dunton had overseen since September 30, 1942, and similar units from the British RAF Middle East Command. [3] In June 1943, prior to the invasion of Sicily (Operation Husky), Brigadier General Harold Bartron became the commander of NAASC. [4] On December 10, 1943, MAC was disbanded and NAASC was reorganized in the newly established Mediterranean Allied Air Forces.

Northwest African Air Forces

Northwest African Air Forces (NAAF) was a component of the Allied Mediterranean Air Command (MAC) during February–December 1943. It was responsible primarily for air operations during the Tunisian Campaign and bombing of Italy. Its commander was Lieutenant General Carl Spaatz of the United States Army Air Force. NAAF was created following a reorganization of the command structure of Allied air forces in the Mediterranean Theatre. The other components of MAC were Middle East Command (MEC), AHQ Malta, RAF Gibraltar and 216 Group.

The Mediterranean Air Command (MAC) was a World War II Allied air-force command that was active in the North African and Mediterranean Theater of Operations (MTO) between February 18 and December 10, 1943. MAC was under the command of Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Tedder, whose headquarters were next to those of the Supreme Allied Commander, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, in Algiers, Algeria, during the planning of the Allied campaigns in Tunisia, Pantelleria, Sicily, and the invasion of mainland Italy during the war.

Allies of World War II Grouping of the victorious countries of World War II

The Allies of World War II, called the "United Nations" from the 1 January 1942 declaration, were the countries that together opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War (1939–1945). The Allies promoted the alliance as a means to control German, Japanese and Italian aggression.

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References

  1. ↑ Craven, Wesley F. and James L. Cate. The Army Air Forces in World War II, Volume 2, Chicago, Illinois: Chicago University Press, 1949 (Reprinted 1983, ISBN   0-912799-03-X).
  2. ↑ Richards, D. and H. Saunders, The Royal Air Force 1939-1945 (Volume 2, HMSO, 1953).
  3. ↑ http://airforcehistoryindex.org/data/000/243/603.xml 12th Air Force Service Command
  4. ↑ https://archive.is/20120719182710/http://www.af.mil/information/bios/bio.asp?bioID=4621 Brigadier General Harold A. Bartron
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