The Secretary of the Air Force approved the plan 25 January 1972, and the college was officially established on 1 April 1972, at Randolph AFB, TX.

It became apparent that CCAF standards exceeded the minimum requirements of associate degree programs in civilian community colleges.

President Gerald R. Ford signed Public Law 94-361 on 14 July 1976 authorizing the AETC commander to confer the associate degree.

In 2004, Air University became accredited by the SACS Commission on Colleges to award associate and master's degrees.

[citation needed] The CCAF offers Associates of Applied Science degrees in five broad career areas:[5] Within those 5 broad areas, the CCAF currently offers 67 specific degree programs.