The National Air and Space Intelligence Center (NASIC) is the
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
unit for analyzing
military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis List of intelligence gathering disciplines, approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist Commanding officer, commanders in decision making pr ...
on foreign air forces, weapons, and systems. NASIC assessments of aerospace performance characteristics, capabilities, and vulnerabilities are used to shape national security and defense policies and support weapons treaty negotiations and verification.
NASIC provides the
Defense Intelligence Agency
The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) is an intelligence agency and combat support agency of the United States Department of Defense (DoD) specializing in military intelligence.
A component of the Department of Defense and the United States In ...
(DIA) with specialized intelligence regarding foreign air threats.
History
In 1917 the Foreign Data Section of the
Army Signal Corps
The United States Army Signal Corps (USASC) is a branch of the United States Army responsible for creating and managing communications and information systems for the command and control of combined arms forces. It was established in 1860 by ...
' Airplane Engineering Department was established at
McCook Field
McCook Field was an airfield and aviation experimentation station in Dayton, Ohio, United States. It was operated by the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps and its successor the United States Army Air Service from 1917 to 1927. It was named f ...
, and a NASIC predecessor operated the Army Aeronautical Museum (now National Museum of the Air Force) initially at McCook and then on 22 August 1935 at Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio. The Office of the Chief of Air Corps's Information Division had become the OCAC Intelligence Division by 1939, which transferred into the
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
(USAAF) as AC/AS, Intelligence and was known as A-2 (in April, 1942, the
Air Intelligence School was at the
Harrisburg Academy
Harrisburg Academy is an independent, coeducational, college preparatory day school in Wormleysburg, Pennsylvania, United States. The school has a diverse student body in nursery through 12th grade. The school was established in 1784 by John Har ...
.)
The
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
evaluated foreign aircraft during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
with the "T-2 Intelligence Department at
Wright Field
Wilbur Wright Field was a military installation and an airfield used as a World War I pilot, mechanic, and armorer training facility and, under different designations, conducted United States Army Air Corps and Air Forces flight testing. Loc ...
and
Freeman Field
: ''For the civil use of this facility after 1946, see Freeman Municipal Airport ''
Freeman Army Airfield is an inactive United States Army Air Forces base located in south-southwest of Seymour, Indiana.
Established in 1942, the base became t ...
, Indiana". In July 1944, Wright Field analysts fired a
V-1 engine
reconstructed from "
Robot Blitz" wreckage
(an entire V-1 was reconstructed at
Republic Aviation
The Republic Aviation Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer based in Farmingdale, New York, on Long Island, New York, Long Island. Originally known as the Seversky Aircraft Company, the company was responsible for the design and produ ...
by 8 September). Post-war,
Operation Lusty recruited German technology experts who were interrogated prior to working in the United States, e.g., Dr.
Herbert Wagner at a
Point Mugu
Point Mugu (, Chumash: ''Muwu'') is a cape or promontory within Point Mugu State Park on the Pacific Coast in Ventura County, near the city of Port Hueneme and the city of Oxnard. The name is believed to be derived from the Chumash India ...
USMC detachment and
Walter Dornberger
Major-General Dr. Walter Robert Dornberger (6 September 1895 – 26 June 1980) was a German Army artillery officer whose career spanned World War I and World War II. He was a leader of Nazi Germany's V-2 rocket programme and other projects a ...
at
Bell Aircraft
The Bell Aircraft Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer, a builder of several types of fighter aircraft for World War II but most famous for the Bell X-1, the first supersonic aircraft, and for the development and production of many i ...
. The "capability…anticipated for
Soviet
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
intercontinental jet bombers" (e.g., in NSC 20/4 in the fall of 1945) determined a
Radar Fence
Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), direction (azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track aircraf ...
was needed for sufficient U.S. warning and that the
"1954 Interceptor" (F-106) was needed (specified in the 13 January 1949, Air Development Order): "the appearance of a Soviet jet bomber
as in the1954…
May Day
May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the Northern Hemisphere's March equinox, spring equinox and midsummer June solstice, solstice. Festivities ma ...
parade".
"By 1944, it had become obvious that German aeronautical technology was superior in many ways, to that of this country, and we needed to obtain this technology and make use of it," said
P-47
The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt is a World War II-era fighter aircraft produced by the American company Republic Aviation from 1941 through 1945. It was a successful high-altitude fighter, and it also served as the foremost American fighter-bombe ...
and
Messerschmitt Me 262
The Messerschmitt Me 262, nicknamed (German for "Swallow") in fighter versions, or ("Storm Bird") in fighter-bomber versions, is a fighter aircraft and fighter-bomber that was designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Messers ...
pilot USAAF Lieutenant Roy Brown during a speech at NASIC in 2014. To accomplish this task, then Colonel Harold E. Watson was sent from Wright Field to Europe in 1944, to locate German aircraft of advanced design. Watson would become an integral part of forming the intelligence unit that would eventually become NASIC.
Air Technical Intelligence Center

On 21 May 1951, the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) was established as a USAF field activity of the Assistant
Chief of Staff for Intelligence. ATIC analyzed engine parts and the tail section of a
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 (; USAF/DoD designation: Type 14; NATO reporting name: Fagot) is a jet fighter aircraft developed by Mikoyan-Gurevich for the Soviet Union. The MiG-15 was one of the first successful jet fighters to incorporate s ...
and in July, the center received a complete MiG-15 that had crashed. ATIC also obtained
IL-10 and
Yak-9
The Yakovlev Yak-9 (; NATO reporting name: Frank) is a single-engine, single-seat multipurpose fighter aircraft used by the Soviet Union and its allies during World War II and the early Cold War. It was a development of the robust and successful ...
aircraft in operational condition, and monitored a captured MiG-15's flight test program. ATIC awarded a contract to
Battelle Memorial Institute
Battelle Memorial Institute (or simply Battelle) is an American private nonprofit applied science and technology development company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.
History
The institute was founded in 1929 by Gordon Battelle. Originall ...
for translation and analysis of materiel and documents gathered during the
Korean War
The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...
. Analysis allowed FEAF to develop fighter engagement tactics. In 1958 ATIC had a
Readix Computer in Building 828, 1 of 6 WPAFB buildings used by the unit prior to the center built in 1976.
Discoverer 29 (launched 30 April 1961) then photographed the "first Soviet
ICBM
An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a ballistic missile with a range (aeronautics), range greater than , primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery (delivering one or more Thermonuclear weapon, thermonuclear warheads). Conven ...
offensive launch complex" at
Plesetsk
Plesetsk () is an urban locality (a work settlement) and the administrative center of Plesetsky District, Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia, situated about northeast of Moscow and south of Arkhangelsk. Municipally, it is the administrative center ...
.
The
Defense Intelligence Agency
The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) is an intelligence agency and combat support agency of the United States Department of Defense (DoD) specializing in military intelligence.
A component of the Department of Defense and the United States In ...
was created on 1 October.
Foreign Technology Division
In 1961 ATIC became the Foreign Technology Division (FTD) which was reassigned to
Air Force Systems Command
The Air Force Systems Command (AFSC) is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command. It was established in April 1951, being split off from Air Materiel Command. The mission of AFSC was Research and Development for new weapons systems.
AFS ...
(AFSC). FTD intelligence estimates were subsequently provided to the National Security Council. At
Tonopah Test Range Airport
Tonopah Test Range Airport , at the Tonopah Test Range (Senior Trend project site PS-66) is southeast of Tonopah, Nevada, Tonopah, Nevada, and northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada. It is a major airfield with a runway, instrument approach faciliti ...
, FTD conducted test and evaluation of captured Soviet fighter aircraft (AFSC
The pilots were recruited from the
Air Force Test Center
The Air Force Test Center (AFTC) is a development and test organization of the United States Air Force. It conducts research, development, test, and evaluation of aerospace systems from concept to deployment. It has test flown every aircraft in ...
at
Edwards AFB
Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force installation in California. Most of the base sits in Kern County, but its eastern end is in San Bernardino County and a southern arm is in Los Angeles County. The hub of the base is Edwa ...
. The aircraft of the
1966 Iraqi Air Force MiG-21 defection was loaned by Israel to the U.S. Air Force and transferred to Nevada for study.
In 1968, the US Air Force and Navy ''
HAVE DOUGHNUT'' project flew the aircraft at
Area 51
Area 51 is the common name of a highly classified United States Air Force (USAF) facility within the Nevada Test and Training Range in southern Nevada, north-northwest of Las Vegas.
A remote detachment administered by Edwards Air Force B ...
for simulated air combat training (renamed ''
HAVE DRILL'' and transferred to the Tonopah TTR ). U.S. casualties flying foreign aircraft included those in the
1979 Tonopah MiG-17 crash during training versus a
Northrop F-5
The Northrop F-5 is a family of supersonic light fighter aircraft initially designed as a privately funded project in the late 1950s by Northrop Corporation. There are two main models: the original F-5A and F-5B Freedom Fighter variants, and th ...
and the
1984 Little Skull Mountain MiG-23 crash which killed a USAF general.
FTD detachments were located in
Virginia, California (Det 2), Germany (Det 3), Japan (Det 4), and Det 5—first in Massachusetts and later Colorado (
Buckley ANGB
Buckley Space Force Base is a United States Space Force base in Aurora, Colorado named after United States Army Air Service First Lieutenant John Harold Buckley. The base is run by Space Base Delta 2, with major units including the U.S. Space ...
). By 1968 FTD had an "Aerial Phenomenon Office" and in 1983, FTD/OLAI at the
Cheyenne Mountain Complex
The Cheyenne Mountain Complex is a United States Space Force installation and defensive bunker located in unincorporated El Paso County, Colorado, next to the city of Colorado Springs, at the Cheyenne Mountain Space Force Station, which host ...
published the ''Analysis of
Cosmos
The cosmos (, ; ) is an alternative name for the universe or its nature or order. Usage of the word ''cosmos'' implies viewing the universe as a complex and orderly system or entity.
The cosmos is studied in cosmologya broad discipline covering ...
1220 and Cosmos 1306 Fragments''.
In 1971 the FTD obtained, translated, and published a copy of the paper ''Method of Edge Waves in the Physical Theory of Diffraction'', originally a Russian-language work by
Pyotr Ufimtsev
Pyotr (Petr) Yakovlevich Ufimtsev (; born 8 July 1931) is a Soviet and Russian electrical engineer and mathematical physicist, best known for his pioneering work on the physical theory of diffraction (PTD), which laid the groundwork for mode ...
of the Central Research Radio Engineering Institute
�НИРТИof the Defense Ministry of the Soviet Union, which became the basis for
stealth aircraft
Stealth aircraft are designed to avoid detection using a variety of technologies that reduce reflection/emission of radar, infrared, visible light, radio frequency (RF) spectrum, and audio, collectively known as stealth technology. The F-117 Ni ...
technology.
National Air Intelligence Center
In October 1993 at the end of the
Cold War
The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
, FTD became the National Air Intelligence Center as "a component of the
Air Intelligence Agency
Twenty-Fifth Air Force (25 AF), was a numbered air force (NAF) within the United States Air Force (USAF), and served as the Air Force's premier military intelligence organization. 25 AF was established on 29 September 2014McCullough, Amy, "ISR ...
",
and by 2005 had a Signals Exploitation Divisio
SAM.gov , Home after being renamed the National Air and Space Intelligence Center on 15 February 2003.
NASIC's Defense Intelligence Space Threat Committee coordinates "a wide variety of complex space/counterspace analytical activities." The Center includes a library with interlibrary loan to
Air University, et
Organization
NASIC is an
Wing (military unit)#United States Air Force & Civil Air Patrol, operation wing and
Field Operating Agency
This is a list of Field Operating Agencies (FOA) in the United States Air Force that are active. FOAs report directly to a functional manager in either the Office of the Secretary of the Air Force or the Air Staff. FOAs perform field activities ...
(FOA) of the
USAF
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
; as an FOA, it reports to the
Air Staff through the
Deputy Chief of Staff for ISR and Cyber Effects Operations.
[ The Center is led by a Commander, currently Col. Ariel Batungbacal, and has an annual budget of over $507 million.
NASIC's 4,100 civilian, military, Reserve, ]National Guard
National guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards.
...
, and contract personnel are split between the Centers' four intelligence analysis
Intelligence analysis is the application of individual and collective cognitive methods to weigh data and test hypotheses within a secret socio-cultural context. The descriptions are drawn from what may only be available in the form of delibera ...
groups, four support directorates, and 18 squadrons.
The Air and Cyberspace Intelligence Group; Geospatial
Geographic data and information is defined in the ISO/TC 211 series of standards as data and information having an implicit or explicit association with a location relative to Earth (a geographic location or geographic position). It is also call ...
and Signatures Intelligence Group; Global Exploitation Intelligence Group; and Space, Missiles and Forces Intelligence Group comprise the four intelligence groups; the Directorate of Communications and Information, Directorate of Personnel, Directorate of Facilities and Logistics, and Directorate of Plans and Operations comprise the four support directorates.[
]
Lineage
* Established, activated, and organized as Foreign Technology Division on 1 July 1961
: Redesignated: Air Force Foreign Technology Center on 1 October 1991
: Redesignated: Foreign Aerospace Science and Technology Center on 1 January 1992
: Redesignated: National Air Intelligence Center on 1 October 1993
: Redesignated: National Air and Space Intelligence Center on 20 February 2003
Assignments
* Air Force Systems Command
The Air Force Systems Command (AFSC) is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command. It was established in April 1951, being split off from Air Materiel Command. The mission of AFSC was Research and Development for new weapons systems.
AFS ...
, 1 July 1961 – 30 September 1991
* Air Force Intelligence Command
Twenty-Fifth Air Force (25 AF), was a numbered air force (NAF) within the United States Air Force (USAF), and served as the Air Force's premier military intelligence organization. 25 AF was established on 29 September 2014McCullough, Amy, "ISR ...
(later redesignated Air Intelligence Agency, Air Force ISR Agency, then Twenty-Fifth Air Force
Twenty-Fifth Air Force (25 AF), was a numbered air force (NAF) within the United States Air Force (USAF), and served as the Air Force's premier military intelligence organization. 25 AF was established on 29 September 2014McCullough, Amy, "ISR ...
), 1 October 1991 – 30 September 2014
** NOTE: On 11 October 2019, Twenty-Fifth Air Force merged with Twenty-Fourth Air Force
Twenty-Fourth Air Force / Air Forces Cyber (AFCYBER) was a Numbered Air Force within the United States Air Force. The Air Force consolidated its cyberspace combat and support forces into 24 AF. 24 AF was the Air Force component of United States ...
to form Sixteenth Air Force
The Sixteenth Air Force (Air Forces Cyber) (16 AF) is a United States Air Force (USAF) organization responsible for information warfare, which encompasses intelligence gathering and analysis, surveillance, reconnaissance, cyber warfare and ele ...
* Air Staff (United States)
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 established by the U ...
, Headquarters U.S. Air Force/A2, 1 October 2014 – present
List of commanders
* Brig. Gen. Arthur J. Pierce, February 1961 – July 1964
* Brig. Gen. Arthur W. Cruikshank Jr., July 1964 – August 1966
* Col. Raymond S. Sleeper, August 1966 – November 1968
* Col. George R. Weinbrenner, November 1968 – July 1974
* Col. James W. Rawers, July 1974 – July 1975
* Col. John B. Marks, Jr., July 1975 – January 1977
* Col. Howard E. Wright, January 1977 – June 1981
* Col. David S. Watrous, June 1981 – February 1983
* Col. Earl A. Pontius, February 1983 – June 1986
* Col. Gary Culp, June 1986 – August 1988
* Brig. Gen. Francis C. Gideon, August 1988 – June 1992
* Col. James E. Miller, Jr., June 1992 – July 1994
* Col. Gary D. Payton, July 1994 – August 1996
* Col. Kenneth K. Dumm, August 1996 – December 1997
* Col. Richard G. Annas, December 1997 – September 2000
* Col. Steven R. Capenos, September 2000 – July 2002
* Col. Mark C. Christian, July 2002 – September 2004
* Col. Joseph J. Pridotkas, September 2004 – July 2006
* Col. Karen A. Cleary, July 2006 – June 2008
* Col. D. Scott George (BG Select), June 2008 – June 2010
* Col. Kathleen C. Sakura, June 2010 – May 2012
* Col. Aaron M. Prupas, May 2012 – June 2014
* Col. Leah G. Lauderback, June 2014 – May 2016
* Col. Sean P. Larkin, May 2016 – June 2018
* Col. Parker H. Wright, 28 June 2018 – May 2020
* Col. Maurizio D. Calabrese, 9 June 2020 – 2 June 2022
* Col. Ariel G. Batungbacal, 2 June 2022 – present
Decorations
* Air and Space Organizational Excellence Award
The Air and Space Organizational Excellence Award (ASOEA) is a unit award of the United States Air Force and United States Space Force. It was created by the Secretary of the Air Force on 26 August 1969 as the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award. Th ...
** 1 October 1996 – 30 September 1998 (as National Air Intelligence Center)
** 1 June 2000 – 31 May 2002 (as National Air Intelligence Center)
** 1 June 2001 – 31 May 2003 (as National Air Intelligence Center)
** 1 June 2003 – 31 May 2004
** 1 November 2007 - 31 December 2008
** 1 January 2013 – 31 December 2014
** 1 January 2015 – 31 December 2016 [Dept of the Air Force Special Order G-095, 2018]
Stations
* Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB) is a United States Air Force base and census-designated place just east of Dayton, Ohio, in Greene County, Ohio, Greene and Montgomery County, Ohio, Montgomery counties. It includes both Wright and Patte ...
, Dayton, Ohio, 1 July 1961 – present
See also
* Space Delta 18
References
*Bruce Ashcroft
Air Technical Intelligence Center, The 1950s, and National Security Policy
{{Use American English, date=January 2014
Centers of the United States Air Force
Intelligence units of the United States Air Force
Military units and formations established in 1993
Technical intelligence
Intelligence analysis agencies
Military units and formations in Ohio