Tactical Air Command (TAC) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a major command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 and headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. It was inactivated on 1 June 1992 and its personnel and equipment absorbed by Air Combat Command (ACC).
Tactical Air Command was established to provide a balance between strategic, air defense, and tactical forces of the post–World War II U.S. Army Air Forces followed by, in 1947, the U.S. Air Force. In 1948, the Continental Air Command assumed control over air defense, tactical air, and air reserve forces. After two years in a subordinate role, Tactical Air Command (TAC) was established as a major command.
In 1992, after assessing the mission of TAC and to accommodate a decision made regarding Strategic Air Command (SAC), Headquarters United States Air Force deactivated TAC and incorporated its resources into the newly created ACC.
History
Operational history
World War II showed the effectiveness of tactical air power in supporting army ground forces. However, the rapid demobilization in late 1945 meant that the huge air armada that had brought Germany to her knees and victory in Europe had been downsized to a shadow of its former self.
Following the end of World War II, Headquarters United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) had little funding and most wartime personnel had been released from active duty and returned to civilian life. Many USAAF aircraft were being sent to storage or scrapyards, although the increasing tension with the Soviet Union meant that combat military air forces were still needed. The big questions were how large and what kind of forces.Hill, Mike and Campbell, John, Tactical Air Command – An Illustrated History 1946–1992, 2001
A major realignment of the USAAF was undertaken in early 1946. As part of the realignment, three major command divisions within the Continental United States (CONUS) were formed: Strategic Air Command, Tactical Air Command, and Air Defense Command. Each was given a specific responsibility, using assets prescribed to accomplish the assigned mission. Tactical Air Command was formed to command, organize, equip, train and administer assigned or attached forces. It was to plan for and participate in tactics for fighter, light bombardment and other aircraft. These included tactical fighters, tactical bombers, tactical missiles, troop carrier aircraft, assault, reconnaissance, and support units. TAC also planned for and developed the capability to deploy tactical striking forces anywhere in the world.
During its existence, Tactical Air Command deployed personnel, material and/or aircraft to Asia (both Pacific Rim/Southeast Asia and Southwest Asia/Middle East), Africa, North America, South America, Europe and Australia in support of its prescribed mission.
TAC's original authorization was 25,500 officers and enlisted men. Aircraft assets available consisted of propeller-driven North American P-51 Mustangs, Republic P-47 Thunderbolts and a handful of the new jet-powered Lockheed P-80 Shooting Stars. TAC was also given control of the Third Air Force, Ninth Air Force and Twelfth Air Force.
Berlin Airlift
On 18 September 1947, the United States Air Force was established as a separate military force, with TAC as one of its major commands. Six months later, in March 1948, the first test of the United States' resolve began with the blockade of Berlin by the Soviet Union and the need for tactical air power in Europe to underscore the airlift mission was necessary.
At the time, there was only one U.S. Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) tactical air unit available in Europe, the 86th Composite Group at Neubiberg Air Base near Munich, flying P-47Ds. TAC was called upon to send additional units and aircraft to Europe to reinforce the 86 FG. The 36th Fighter Group, flying Lockheed F-80B "Shooting Stars," was transferred from Howard AFB in the Panama Canal Zone to Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base near Munich. In addition to tactical fighter aircraft, TAC also deployed available C-47 Skytrain transports to Europe, transferring them to USAFE, which was in control of the airlift. As the airlift continued, TAC also transferred available C-54 Skymaster transports to Europe, where they were assigned to the troop carrier groups that had been sent to Germany for the airlift.
Consequently, the Soviet Union entered into negotiations with the United States, the United Kingdom and France which culminated in an agreement, signed on 5 May 1949, that resulted in the lifting of the blockade, but it did not settle the basic issue of freedom of access. Despite the resumption of surface traffic into the city, the airlift continued until 30 September to mass a reserve of food, fuel, and other supplies in the event the Soviets reimposed the blockade.
Continental Air Command
In December 1948, Air Defense Command (ADC) and TAC were brought together to form Continental Air Command (ConAC). HQ TAC was reduced to the status of an operational headquarters under CONAC. This move reflected an effort to concentrate all fighter forces deployed within the continental United States (CONUS) to strengthen the air defense of the North American continent. The creation of ConAC was largely an administrative convenience: the units assigned to ConAC were dual-trained and expected to revert to their primary strategic or tactical roles after the air defense battle was won. Two years later, on 1 December 1950, the Air Force reestablished Tactical Air Command as a major command and removed it from assignment to ConAC in large part due to the need to deploy personnel and aircraft to Japan and South Korea due to the Korean War.
Korean War
On the morning of 25 June 1950, the peace in South Korea was shattered by the sound of invading tanks. The North Korean army had crossed the 38th parallel and were driving south towards the South Korean capital of Seoul in an effort to unite the country under Communist rule. The United States Air Force, weakened by post-World War II demobilization, associated budget reductions, and preoccupied with the threat of the Soviet Union, was thrust into its first war as a separate service when North Korea invaded South Korea.
Air bases in the United States went on mobility alert to prepare for overseas movement in response to what was then described as the "Korean Emergency." Units from SAC and CONAC were deployed to Japan and South Korea, while Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard units were recalled to active duty and, in the case of the Air National Guard, placed under Federal Service in case they were needed. What started out as an emergency turned into a bona-fide war. The Korean War marked the creation of a professional Air Force that would grow in size and strength for decades to come.
From the start, the deployed tactical fighters and bombers to Japan and South Korea were effective. On 10 July a North Korean armored column was trapped at a bombed-out bridge near Pyongtaek. F-80 Shooting Stars, B-26 Invaders, and F-82 Twin Mustangs destroyed 117 trucks, 38 tanks, and seven half-tracks. This attack, along with others, gutted North Korea's single armored division. Had it survived, the North Korean force could have easily punched through the United Nations (UN) defensive line at Pusan and driven UN Command (UNC) forces into the sea.
By the end of August 1950, the initial North Korean onslaught was reversed and Seoul was retaken. As the United Nations forces advanced into North Korea, forces from the Communist China stepped in to help their North Korean allies. The UN advance ground to a halt in December, then retreated south in early 1951 while tactical aircraft continued to support of United Nations forces. Eventually, the line stabilized along the 38th Parallel, where a stalemate ensued for the next two years.
Known TAC units and aircraft deployed to Far East Air Forces (1950–1953) Units and aircraft were stationed both in South Korea and Japan and attached to Fifth Air Force during their deployment to Far East Air Forces (FEAF). This list does not include ConAC, Air Force Reserve, or Air National Guard tactical air units federalized and deployed to FEAF during the Korean War.USAF Organizations in Korea 1950–1953 United States Air Force Office of Historical Research, Maxwell AFB, Alabama
4th Fighter-Interceptor Wing (F-86 Sabre) Deployed from: New Castle Airport, Delaware 474th Fighter-Bomber Group Wing (F-84 Thunderjet) Deployed from: Clovis AFB, New Mexico 452nd Bombardment Wing (Light) (B-26 Invader) Deployed from: George AFB, California
67th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing (RF-80, RF-86, RB-26) Deployed from: March AFB, California 314th Troop Carrier Wing (Medium) (C-119 Flying Boxcar) Deployed from: Smyrna AFB, Tennessee 403rd Troop Carrier Wing (Medium) (C-119, C-47, C-54) Portland Airport, Oregon
United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE)
Even with the active war in Korea raging, in the early 1950s Europe received a higher priority of air power than Korea by the Truman Administration and the Department of Defense. Deterring the threat of a Communist takeover of Western Europe was considered more important to the long-term survival of the United States than a Communist victory in Korea.
In September 1950, NATO's Military Committee had called for an ambitious buildup of conventional forces to meet the Soviets, subsequently reaffirming this position at the February 1952 meeting of the Atlantic Council in Lisbon which had established a goal of ultimately fielding 96 divisions in the event of a conventional war in 1954. In support of this, the United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE), which consisted of 16 wings totaling 2,100 aircraft, was programmed to expand to 28 wings, 22 of them in NATO's Central Region alone, backed by deployed Strategic Air Command units sent from CONUS.
The USAF reassigned combat wings from TAC to USAFE during the period from April 1951 through December 1954. These were: 81st Fighter-Interceptor Wing Reassigned to: RAF Bentwaters, United Kingdom 47th Bombardment Wing, Light Deployed to: RAF Sculthorpe, United Kingdom (Remained assigned to TAC's 49th Air Division) 20th Fighter-Bomber Wing Reassigned to: RAF Wethersfield, United Kingdom 406th Fighter-Bomber Wing Reassigned to: RAF Manston, United Kingdom 66th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing Reassigned to: Sembach Air Base, West Germany 10th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing Reassigned to: Spangdahlem Air Base, West Germany 50th Fighter-Bomber Wing Reassigned to: Hahn Air Base, West Germany 21st Fighter Bomber Wing Reassigned to: Chambley-Bussieres Air Base, France 48th Fighter Bomber Wing Activated at: Chaumont-Semoutiers Air Base, France (Replaced ANG 137th Fighter-Bomber Wing) 388th Fighter Bomber Wing Reassigned to: Etain-Rouvres Air Base, France 60th Troop Carrier Wing Reassigned to: Dreux-Louvillier Air Base, France 465th Troop Carrier Wing Reassigned to: Toul-Rosières Air Base, France 38th Tactical Bombardment Wing (Light) Reassigned to: Laon-Couvron Air Base, France
These wings gave USAFE and NATO approximately 500 fighters, 100 light bombers, 100 tactical reconnaissance aircraft, 100 tactical airlift transports, and 18,000 USAF personnel.
Rotational Deployments to Mediterranean Bases
With the phase-out of the B-47 Stratojet from SAC in the mid-1960s, the need for Strategic Air Command Operation Reflex European bases diminished and the Sixteenth Air Force (16AF) was turned over to the USAFE on 15 April 1966.