Pacific Air Forces
United States Air Force major command responsible for forces deployed in the Asia-Pacific region
The Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force and is also the air component command of the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). PACAF is headquartered at the Hickam AFB portion of Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam, Hawaii, and is one of two USAF MAJCOMs assigned outside the continental United States, the other being the United States Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa. Over the past eighty plus years, PACAF has been engaged in combat in the Korean and Vietnamese Wars and Operations Desert Storm, Southern Watch, Northern Watch, Enduring Freedom, and Iraqi Freedom.
The mission of Pacific Air Forces is to provide ready air and space power to promote U.S. interests in the Asia-Pacific region during peacetime, through crisis, and in war. PACAF organizes, trains, and equips the 45,000 Total Force personnel of the Regular Air Force, the Air Force Reserve, and the Air National Guard with the tools necessary to support the Commander of United States Indo-Pacific Command. PACAF comprises three numbered Air Forces, nine main bases, and nearly 375 aircraft.
The command's area of responsibility extends from the west coast of the United States to the east coast of Asia and from the Arctic to the Antarctic, more than 100,000,000 square miles (260,000,000 km2). The area is home to nearly two billion people who live in 44 countries.
History
Far East Air Forces
The beginnings of PACAF can be traced back to June 1944, when Major General St. Clair Streett's Thirteenth Air Force was added to Allied Air Forces, South West Pacific Area.
The public source identifies “Pacific Air Forces” as united States Air Force major command responsible for forces deployed in the Asia-Pacific region. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Pacific, Forces and United.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Pacific Air Forces”, the useful work is to connect “united States Air Force major command responsible for forces deployed in the Asia-Pacific region” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 2, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2045517. The first chronological checks are 1944.
Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Pacific Air Forces”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Pacific Air Forces primary sources, Pacific Air Forces archive and Pacific research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Pacific Air Forces”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Pacific Air Forces” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.