It is under the jurisdiction of the Washington Air National Guard unless it is federalized by order of the President of the United States.

The WADS is one of two Sectors responsible to the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and the Continental NORAD Region for peacetime air sovereignty, strategic air defense, and airborne counter-drug operations in the continental United States.

This allows commanders to monitor the airspace above, beyond and within U.S. and Canadian borders, providing a major component for homeland defense.

It also incorporates a newly developed situational awareness system that gives WADS unprecedented tools and technology to assist state and local responders in dealing with natural disasters.

The Sector was inactivated on 1 April 1966 as part of an ADC consolidation and reorganization; and its units were reassigned to the 25th Air Division.

Beginning on 1 July 1958 it began operations of a SAGE (Semi-Automatic Ground Environment) Direction Center DC-1247°07′18″N 122°30′14″W / 47.12167°N 122.50389°W / 47.12167; -122.50389 (SeADS-SAGE DC-12, CC-03) at McChord AFB.

The 25th Air Division was inactivated on 30 September 1990, transferring its assets and responsibility for atmospheric defense to NWADS.

WADS assumed responsibility for the air sovereignty of the western United States from Texas around the west coast and across to North Dakota.