Tenth Air Force

10th Air Force USAAF emblem

Tenth Air Force was constituted on 4 February 1942 and activated on 12 February, built up around a nucleus of air force personnel newly arrived from Java and the Philippines, under the command of Maj. Gen. Lewis H. Brereton. It had its headquarters at New Delhi. Components of the air force moved to India over a three-month period from March to May 1942. It was responsible for creating, operating and safeguarding the India-China Ferry, more commonly known as the Hump airlift, between 8 April and 1 December 1942, first with its Assam-Burma-China Command until 16 July, then the India-China Ferry Command until 1 December, when jurisdiction for the airlift passed to the Air Transport Command.

The Tenth Air Force initially provided control of all USAAF combat operations in the China Burma India Theater under theater commander Lt. Gen. Joseph Stillwell. Units based in China were controlled by the China Air Task Force of the Tenth Air Force, created 4 July 1942 to replace the American Volunteer Group, and commanded by Brig. Gen. Claire Chennault. Units based in India were controlled by the India Air Task Force, created 8 October 1942, commanded by Brigadier General Caleb V. Haynes.

In March 1943 the China Air Task Force was dissolved and its components made part of the new Fourteenth Air Force, activated in China under Chennault. The Tenth operated in India and Burma as part of the Allied Eastern Air Command until it moved to China late in July 1945.[3]

The Tenth Air Force conducted offensive strategic bombing operations in Burma and Thailand and supported Allied ground efforts with close air support and operations against Japanese communications and supply installations. After the end of the war in China, the command headquarters departed from Shanghai on 15 December 1945, being attached to Army Service Forces at Fort Lawton, Washington, where the last personnel were demobilized and the command inactivated, being returned to HQ USAAF on 6 January 1946.

In March 1946, USAAF Chief General Carl Spaatz had undertaken a major re-organization of the postwar USAAF that had included the establishment of Major Commands (MAJCOM), who would report directly to HQ United States Army Air Forces. Continental Air Forces was inactivated, and Tenth Air Force was assigned to the postwar Air Defense Command in March 1946 and subsequently to Continental Air Command (ConAC) in December 1948 being primarily concerned with air defense.

The command was re-activated on 24 May 1946 at Brooks Field (later, Brooks AFB), Texas. It moved to Offutt AFB, Nebraska, 1 July 1948; Fort Benjamin Harrison (later, Benjamin Harrison AFB), Indiana, 25 September 1948. It was originally assigned to provide air defense over a wide region from Kentucky to Montana; from the Four Corners of southwest Colorado to the Northeast tip of Minnesota, north of the borders of New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Tennessee.

The 56th Fighter Wing at Selfridge AFB, Michigan, joined Tenth Air Force on 1 December 1948, transferring in from SAC's Fifteenth Air Force.

In addition to the command and control of the active Air Force interceptor and radar units in its region, it also became the command organization for the Air Force Reserve and state Air National Guard units. By 1949 with the establishment of the Western Air Defense Force (WADF) and Eastern Air Defense Force (EADF), the air defense mission of the command was transferred to WADF, leaving Tenth AF free to focus on its reserve training tasks.

Moved to Selfridge AFB, Michigan, 16 January 1950 where for the next decade it concentrated on air reserve training throughout the decade. On 1 July 1960, the Fifth Air Force Reserve Region was formed at Selfridge AFB. The Fifth Air Force Reserve Region was one of five Reserve regions and became operational on 1 September 1960, under the control of Continental Air Command (CAC), as a result, Tenth Air Force was discontinued, and inactivated, on 1 September 1960.

Tenth Air Force was reactivated on 20 January 1966, at Richards-Gebaur AFB, Missouri as part of Air Defense Command with the inactivation of its organization of Air Defense Sectors. Its area of responsibility was the central region of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains to the Mississippi River and the northern peninsula of Michigan.

On 16 January 1968 Air Defense Command was re-designated Aerospace Defense Command (ADCOM) as part of a restructuring of USAF air defense forces. Tenth Air Force's second period of service was short lived, however, and the command was again inactivated as the result of a major ADCOM reorganization on 31 December 1969 of the First Fourth, Tenth Air Forces and several Air Divisions. This reorganization was the result of the need to eliminate intermediate levels of command in ADCOM driven by budget reductions and a perceived lessening of the need for continental air defense against attacking Soviet aircraft.

ADCOM reassigned the units under the inactivated Tenth Air Force primarily to the 14th, 23d and 24th Air Divisions.

Continental Air Command was discontinued on 1 August 1968, and was replaced by Headquarters Air Force Reserve, located at Robins AFB, Georgia. In July 1969, the Fourth Region moved from Randolph AFB to Ellington AFB, near Houston, Texas. On 31 December 1969, the five regions were merged into three. The responsibilities of the Fourth and Fifth Regions were consolidated into the new Central Air Force Reserve Region. Eastern Region became responsible for the First and Second Region areas, the Sixth Region became the Western Region. This change increased the area of responsibility of Central Region from five states to 14, ranging from the Canadian to the Mexican borders. As a result of these consolidations, Tenth Air Force was again inactivated on 31 December 1969.

When Air Force operations were phased out of Ellington AFB, Central Region Headquarters moved to Bergstrom AFB in Austin, Texas on 10 March 1976. The Air Force Reserve's entire intermediate management structure was then realigned effective 8 October 1976; and the Reserve Regions were inactivated and succeeded by the currently activated Tenth Air Force. Redesignated Tenth Air Force (Reserve) on 24 September 1976, the unit activated in the Reserve on 8 October 1976 at Bergstrom AFB, Texas, assigned to Air Force Reserve. It was redesignated Tenth Air Force on 1 December 1985.

As a result, the unit assumed command over all Tactical Air Command-gained and Strategic Air Command-gained Air Force Reserve units regardless of geographic location. With the inactivation of TAC and SAC in 1992, Tenth Air Force today is responsible for command supervision of fighter, bomber, rescue, airborne warning and control, special operations, flying training, combat air operations battle staff, and space reserve units.

• Established as 10th Air Force on 4 February 1942.

Activated on 12 February 1942

Redesignated Tenth Air Force on 18 September 1942

Inactivated on 6 January 1946

• Activated on 24 May 1946

Discontinued, and inactivated, on 1 September 1960

• Activated on 20 January 1966

Organized on 1 April 1966

Inactivated on 31 December 1969

• Redesignated Tenth Air Force (Reserve) on 24 September 1976

Activated on 8 October 1976

Redesignated Tenth Air Force on 1 December 1985

• Air Force Combat Command, 12 February 1942
• U.S. Army Forces in China-Burma-India Theater, 5 March 1942
• Army Air Forces, India-Burma Sector, 21 August 1943

Attached to Eastern Air Command, 15 December 1943 – 1 June 1945

Further attached to Strategic Air Force, Eastern Air Command, 15 December 1943 – 20 June 1944

• Army Air Forces, India-Burma Theater, 27 October 1944
• Army Air Forces, China Theater, 6 July 1945
• U.S. Army Air Forces, China Theater, 25 August 1945
• Army Service Forces, Seattle Port of Embarkation, 5–6 January 1946
• Air Defense Command, 24 May 1946
• Continental Air Command, 1 December 1948 – 1 September 1960
• Air (later, Aerospace) Defense Command, 20 January 1966 – 31 December 1969
• Air Force Reserve (later, Air Force Reserve Command), 8 October 1976 – present

• IX Air Service Area: 19 March – 1 July 1948 assigned to Tenth Air Force, 19 March – 1 July 1948
• X Air Force Service Command, assigned from 1 February – 20 August 1943. Activated 1 May 1942 with headquarters at New Delhi, India. Brigadier General Elmer E. Adler was appointed oommanding officer. 10 AFSC was redesignated China-Burma-India Air Service Command on 20 August 1943.[4]
• XXI Air Force Service: 19 March – 1 July 1948
• Karachi American Air Base: 13 February – 20 August 1943

• 2 Air Reserve: 1 December 1951 – 1 April 1954.

• Fourth Air Force Reserve: 1 Jul – 1 September 1960
• Fifth Air Force Reserve: 1 Jul – 1 September 1960

• 552d Airborne Early Warning and Control Wing, 15 September – 15 November 1969
• 4780th Air Defense Wing (Training), 1 July 1968 – 15 November 1969