The secretary of the Air Force, sometimes referred to as the secretary of the Department of the Air Force, (SecAF, or SAF/OS) is the head 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 United States Department of Defense, Department of Defense of the United States of America. The Department of the Air Force was formed on Sep ...

and the service secretary for 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 ...

and

United States Space Force The United States Space Force (USSF) is the space force branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces, armed forces of the United States and one of the eight uniformed services of the Unite ...

. The secretary of the Air Force is a civilian appointed by the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

, by and with the

advice and consent Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in List of enacting formulae, enacting formulae of bill (proposed law), bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts. It describes either of two situations: where a weak executive ...

of the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. The secretary reports to the secretary of defense and/or the

deputy secretary of defense The deputy secretary of defense (acronym: DepSecDef) is a statutory office () and the second-highest-ranking official in the Department of Defense of the United States of America. The deputy secretary is the principal civilian deputy to the s ...

, and is by statute responsible for and has the authority to conduct all the affairs of the Department of the Air Force. The secretary works closely with their civilian deputy, the

under secretary of the Air Force The under secretary of the air force (USECAF, or SAF/US), sometimes referred to as the under secretary of the Department of the Air Force, is the second-highest ranking civilian official in the United States Department of the Air Force, Departmen ...

; and their military deputies, the chief of staff of the Air Force and the chief of space operations. The first secretary of the Air Force,

Stuart Symington William Stuart Symington III ( ; June 26, 1901 – December 14, 1988) was an American businessman and Democratic politician from Missouri. He served as the first secretary of the Air Force from 1947 to 1950 and was a United States senator from ...

, was sworn in on September 18, 1947, upon the split and re-organization of the Department of War and

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 ...

into an air military department and a military service of its own, with the enactment of the National Security Act.

Responsibilities

Stuart Symington shown taking the oath of office as Secretary of the Air Force

The secretary is the head of the Department of the Air Force. The Department of the Air Force is defined as a ''Military Department''. It is not limited to the Washington headquarters staffs, rather it is an entity which includes all the components of the United States Air Force and United States Space Force, including their reserve components: The exclusive responsibilities of the secretary of the Air Force are enumerated in of the

United States Code The United States Code (formally The Code of Laws of the United States of America) is the official Codification (law), codification of the general and permanent Law of the United States#Federal law, federal statutes of the United States. It ...

. They include, but are not limited to: By direction of the secretary of defense, the secretary of the Air Force assigns military units of the Air Force and Space Force, other than those who carry out the functions listed in , to the Unified and Specified Combatant Commands to perform missions assigned to those commands. Air Force and Space Force units while assigned to Combatant Commands may only be reassigned by authority of the secretary of defense. However, the

chain of command A command hierarchy is a group of people who carry out orders based on others' authority within the group. Military chain of command In a military context, the chain of command is the line of authority and responsibility along which orders ...

for Air Force and Space Force units for other purposes than the operational direction goes from the ''president'' to the ''secretary of defense'' to the ''secretary of the Air Force'' to the ''commanders of Air Force and Space Force Commands''. Air Force and Space Force officers have to report on any matter to the secretary, or the secretary's designate, when requested. The secretary has the authority to detail, prescribe the duties, and to assign Air Force and Space Force service members and civilian employees, and may also change the title of any activity not statutorily designated. The secretary has several responsibilities under the

Uniform Code of Military Justice The Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) is the foundation of the system of military justice of the armed forces of the United States. The UCMJ was established by the United States Congress in accordance with their constitutional authority ...

(UCMJ) with respect to Air Force and Space Force service members, including the authority to convene general courts martial and to commute sentences. The secretary of the Air Force may also be assigned additional responsibilities by the president or the secretary of defense,10 USC 8013 (d) e.g. the secretary is designated as the "''DoD Executive Agent for Space''", and as such:

Office of the Secretary of the Air Force

The secretary of the Air Force's principal staff element, the Office of the Secretary of the Air Force, has responsibility for acquisition and auditing, comptroller issues (including financial management), inspector general matters, legislative affairs, and public affairs within the Department of the Air Force. The Office of the Secretary of the Air Force is one of the Department of the Air Force's three headquarter staffs at the seat of government, with the others being the Air Staff and the Office of the Chief of Space Operations.

Composition

The Office of the Secretary of the Air Force is composed of: *

Under Secretary of the Air Force The under secretary of the air force (USECAF, or SAF/US), sometimes referred to as the under secretary of the Department of the Air Force, is the second-highest ranking civilian official in the United States Department of the Air Force, Departmen ...

** The Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force for International Affairs ** The Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force for Space Programs * Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics * Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management and Comptroller * Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Installations, Environment and Energy * Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Manpower and Reserve Affairs *

Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Space Acquisition and Integration The assistant secretary of the air force for space acquisition and integration (SAF/SQ) is a civilian position in the United States Department of the Air Force that is appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the United S ...

SECRETARY OF THE AIR FORC
(30 Sep 2022) HEADQUARTERS AIR FORCE MISSION DIRECTIVE 1-17
Special Management ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE AIR FORCE (SPACE ACQUISITION AND INTEGRATION) (SAF/SQ) 20 pages *

General Counsel of the Department of the Air Force The general counsel of the Department of the Air Force (acronym SAF/GC) is the general counsel, chief legal officer of the United States Department of the Air Force, U.S. Department of the Air Force. By U.S. law, the general counsel of the Depar ...

* Inspector General of the Air Force * Chief of Legislative Liaison * Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Air Force * Auditor General of the Department of the Air Force * Air Reserve Forces Policy Committee

List of secretaries of the Air Force

References

* Title 10 United States Code ** Subtitle A – General Military Law *** CHAPTER 1 – DEFINITIONS **** § 101. Definitions *** CHAPTER 6 – COMBATANT COMMANDERS **** § 162. Combatant command: assigned forces; chain of command ** Subtitle D – Air Force *** CHAPTER 903 – DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE **** § 9011. Organization **** § 9013. Secretary of the Air Force **** § 9014. Office of the Secretary of the Air Force **** § 9015. Under Secretary of the Air Force *** CHAPTER 905 – THE AIR STAFF **** § 9032. The Air Staff: general duties **** § 9033. Chief of Staff
Executive Order 12909
Order of Succession of Officers To Act as Secretary of the Air Force
Department of Defense Directive (DODD) 5100.1, Functions of the Department of Defense and Its Major Components, August 1 2002

Department of Defense Directive (DODD) 5101.2, DoD Executive Agent for Space, June 3 2003

Notes

External links

*
US Air Force Senior Leadership
{{DEFAULTSORT:United States Secretary Of The Air Force 1947 establishments in the United States

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