Key West Agreement

The Key West Agreement is the colloquial name for the policy paper Functions of the Armed Forces and the Joint Chiefs of Staff drafted by James V. Forrestal, the first United States Secretary of Defense.

Initially, Secretary Forrestal told General Omar N. Bradley, shortly after the latter became Chief of Staff of the Army in February 1948, that the large aircraft carrier had already been approved and would be built.

Secretary Forrestal, nevertheless, concluded that the time had come to decide the basic roles and missions of aviation in each service and which branch would control which assets.

According to Forrestal, the Joint Chiefs of Staff reached basic agreement that the Navy (including the United States Marine Corps) would maintain a separate Naval Aviation force – to include the 65,000-ton "super-carrier" and nuclear bombs that could be transported on naval aircraft – provided that the Navy would not develop a separate strategic air force.

The paper, which became known as “Key West Agreement,” reaffirmed primary service responsibilities and assigned secondary or “collateral” missions.

The Key West Agreement gave the Navy written verification that it controlled all aspects of its aviation arm, from the roles and missions, research and development, and utilization in combat.