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

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 Department of Defense of the United States of America. The Department of the Air Force was formed on September 18, 1947, per the National Sec ...

and the service secretary for the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Si ...

and

United States Space Force The United States Space Force (USSF) is the space service branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and the world's only independent space force. Along with its sister branch, the U.S. Air Force, the Space ...

. 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: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

, by and with the

advice and consent Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in enacting formulae of bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts. It describes either of two situations: where a weak executive branch of a government enacts something previ ...

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 A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in so ...

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 sec ...

, 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 chief of space operations (CSO) is the service chief of the United States Space Force. The CSO is the principal military adviser to the secretary of the Air Force for Space Force operations and, as a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a m ...

. 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 War Department may refer to: * War Department (United Kingdom) * United States Department of War (1789–1947) See also * War Office, a former department of the British Government * Ministry of defence * Ministry of War * Ministry of Defence {{u ...

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. On July 26, 2021 the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and po ...

confirmed

Frank Kendall III Frank Kendall III (born January 26, 1949) is an American engineer, lawyer and executive who is the 26th and current United States Secretary of the Air Force. He has served in several senior positions in the U.S. Department of Defense. A West Po ...

as the next Secretary of the Air Force. On July 28, 2021, Kendall was sworn in as the 26th Secretary of the Air Force.

Responsibilities

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

and

, including their reserve components: The exclusive responsibilities of the secretary of the Air Force are enumerated in of the

United States Code In the law of the United States, the Code of Laws of the United States of America (variously abbreviated to Code of Laws of the United States, United States Code, U.S. Code, U.S.C., or USC) is the official compilation and codification of the ...

. 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. It can be viewed as part of a power structure, in which it is usually seen as the most vulnerable and also the most powerful part. Milit ...

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, 10 U.S.C. §§ 801–946 is the foundation of Military justice, military law in the United States. It was established by the United States Congress in accordance with the authority given by the United S ...

(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 Assistant may refer to: * Assistant (by Speaktoit), a virtual assistant app for smartphones * Assistant (software), a software tool to assist in computer configuration * Google Assistant, a virtual assistant by Google * ''The Assistant'' (TV ser ...

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 chief legal officer of the U.S. Department of the Air Force. By U.S. law, the General Counsel of the Department of the Air Force is appointed from civilian life by t ...

* 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

Chronological 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

Leaders Through the Years, 2012 USAF Almanac
* {{DEFAULTSORT:United States Secretary Of The Air Force 1947 establishments in the United States

Air The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing f ...