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The Secretary of Defense has laid out four concepts supporting our Rebalance toward the Asia-Pacific: Principles, Partnerships, Presence and Power Projection. The Rebalance will be a gradual process not characterized by a sudden increase in U.S. presence, but rather by deepening our sustained long-term defense engagement and political focus. Pacific Air Forces has a fundamental commitment to principles of open and free commerce within a just international order emphasizing the rights and responsibilities of all nations, fidelity to the rule of law, resolving disputes without coercion and open access to all of the shared domains. PACAF will continue to modernize and strengthen our alliances and partnerships. We will strengthen efforts to nurture existing relationships, and deepen relationships with established partners. We are enhancing our presence in the region by strategically distributing our posture over a wider geographic range. We will sustain investments to project airpower and meet our security commitments in the Pacific region. PACAF will advance investments to increase the technological and maneuver edge of U.S. and Allied forces, with particular emphasis on our unique multi-dimensional skills for warfighting through the air, space, and cyber domains in support of the joint fight. Click the more button to visit the PACAF Strategy & Mission page for more information.
The Secretary of Defense has laid out four concepts supporting our Rebalance toward the Asia-Pacific: Principles, Partnerships, Presence and Power Projection. The Rebalance will be a gradual process not characterized by a sudden increase in U.S. presence, but rather by deepening our sustained long-term defense engagement and political focus.
Pacific Air Forces has a fundamental commitment to principles of open and free commerce within a just international order emphasizing the rights and responsibilities of all nations, fidelity to the rule of law, resolving disputes without coercion and open access to all of the shared domains.
PACAF will continue to modernize and strengthen our alliances and partnerships. We will strengthen efforts to nurture existing relationships, and deepen relationships with established partners.
We are enhancing our presence in the region by strategically distributing our posture over a wider geographic range.
We will sustain investments to project airpower and meet our security commitments in the Pacific region. PACAF will advance investments to increase the technological and maneuver edge of U.S. and Allied forces, with particular emphasis on our unique multi-dimensional skills for warfighting through the air, space, and cyber domains in support of the joint fight.
Click the more button to visit the PACAF Strategy & Mission page for more information.
Pacific Air Forces has the following air frames --
Pacific Air Forces consists of 46,000 military and civilian personnel serving in nine strategic locations and numerous smaller facilities, primarily in Hawaii, Alaska, Japan, Guam and the Republic of Korea. Approximately 1,700 PACAF Airmen are deployed at any given time in support of the Overseas Contingency Operations, many participating in non-traditional missions such as convoy and detainee operations.
Pacific Air Forces is home to three Numbered Air Force units which are the 5th Air Force at Yokota Air Base, Japan; 7th Air Force at Osan Air Base, Republic of Korea; and 11th Air Force at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska.
Major units include the 3rd Wing at JBER; 8th Fighter Wing at Kunsan Air Base, ROK; 15th Airlift Wing at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii; 18th Wing at Kadena Air Base, Japan; 51st Fighter Wing at Osan; 354th Fighter Wing Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska; 35th Fighter Wing at Misawa Air Base, Japan; 374th Airlift Wing at Yokota; and 36th Wing, Andersen Air Force Base, Guam.
For more information on PACAF units, click the more button to visit the unit page.
The Pacific region’s vast size and complexity distinguishes it from other regions. In addition to China, the world’s most populous country, India, the most populous democracy, and Indonesia, a secular democracy with the world’s largest Islamic population, the Asia-Pacific region contains sixty percent of the world’s population, with more than 1,000 languages spoken in 36 nations spread across 52 percent of the Earth’s surface and 16 time zones.
PACAF MISSION: Pacific Air Forces delivers rapid and precise air, space, and cyberspace capabilities to protect and defend the United States, its territories and our allies and partners; provides integrated air and missile warning and defense; promotes interoperability throughout the AOR; maintains strategic access and freedom of movement across all domains; and is postured to respond across the full spectrum of military contingencies in order to restore regional security.
PACAF VISION: Combat-ready American Airmen -- the foundation of Pacific stability and security.
Pacific Air Forces participates in numerous exercises/operations throughout the Pacific, which include, but are not limited to --
COPE INDIA - PACAF-sponsored biennial combined FTX between the U.S. and Indian Air Forces. COPE INDIA rotates between an airlift exercise in India, a fighter exercise in India, and an Indian Air Force (IAF) deployment to the U.S. to participate in a major USAF exercise such as RED FLAG.
COPE NORTH - PACAF’s annual multilateral field training exercise with Japan Air Self Defense Force and Royal Australian air force Andersen AFB. The focus of COPE NORTH is to practice operations, techniques and procedures and enhance interoperability. COPE NORTH has allowed the JASDF to drop live munitions, a mission that can’t be conducted on mainland Japan.
COPE SOUTH - PACAF-sponsored biennial combined field training exercise between the U.S. and Bangladesh air forces held in Bangladesh. Focus is on Humanitarian Assistance Disaster Relief (HA/DR) tactical airlift.
COPE TAUFAN - PACAF-sponsored biennial combined field training exercise between the U.S. and Royal Malaysian air forces held in Malaysia. The focus is on Dissimilar Air Combat Tactics and Large Force Employment.
COPE TIGER - Annual Multilateral Large Force Employment (LFE) exercise involving U.S. Air Force, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Navy, Royal Thai air force, Royal Thai navy and Republic of Singapore air force held in Thailand.
COPE WEST - Annual PACAF-sponsored combined field training exercise between the U.S. and Indonesian air forces held in Indonesia. Currently Cope West is a tactical airlift exercise.
KIWI FLAG - Annual humanitarian airlift/disaster relief-focused PACAF-sponsored combined tactical airlift field training exercise between the U.S. and Royal New Zealand air forces held in New Zealand in conjunction with the OHAKEA AIRSHOW.
OPERATION CHRISTMAS DROP - The longest-running Department of Defense-led humanitarian airlift operations provides supplies and donations to roughly 20,000 people across approximately 50 Micronesian islands
PACIFIC AIRLIFT RALLY - Multilateral military Humanitarian Assistance/Disaster Relief tactical airlift exercise for nations in the Indo-Pacific region. PAR is conducted every two years and is co-hosted by a Pacific Region nation.
PACIFIC ANGEL - Bilateral PACAF-sponsored humanitarian airlift and civil military operations exercise, supporting theater engagement that occurs four times per fiscal year in various locations.
RED FLAG-ALASKA - PACAF’s premiere composite force field training exercise. Executed three times per year, Red Flag - Alaska is designed to provide the finest joint/combined training possible ensuring fighter pilots and aircrew receive at least 10 sorties in a realistic simulated combat environment. This training is accomplished in the world’s largest range, the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex.