The number of active duty Air Force Bases within the United States rose from 115 in 1947 to peak at 162 in 1956 before declining to 69 in 2003 and 59 in 2020.
PACAF's primary mission is to provide U.S. Pacific Command integrated expeditionary Air Force capabilities to defend the Homeland, promote stability, dissuade/deter aggression, and swiftly defeat enemies.
PACAF traces its roots to the activation of Far East Air Forces, 3 August 1944, at Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
The USAFE-AFAFRICA area of responsibility covers Europe, parts of Asia and all of Africa with the exception of Egypt, to achieve US national and NATO objectives based on taskings by the two combatant commanders.
The USAFCENT area of responsibility covers Afghanistan, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, and Yemen.
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency Download coordinates as: