The Air Training Command (ATC) is a former United States Air Force (USAF) Major Command designation. It was headquartered at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas, but was initially formed at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. It was re-designated as Air Education and Training Command (AETC) following a merger with Air University (AU) on 1 July 1993.Manning, Thomas A. (2005), History of Air Education and Training Command, 1942–2002. Office of History and Research, Headquarters, AETC, Randolph AFB, Texas.
ATC was organized on 1 July 1946 as a re-designation of Army Air Forces Training Command (AAFTC) as part of the re-organization of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) after World War II.
For nearly 50 years, ATC was the primary training organization of the United States Air Force from its inception as an independent service in September 1947. It provided pilot and aircrew training; technical training, and enlisted and officer basic training.
At the end of the Cold War, it was merged with AU in July 1993 as part of a major top-to-bottom reorganization of the USAF. Personnel, equipment and resources of both organizations were re-designated as AETC, which assumed the mission of both organizations, but retained AU as a subordinate organization within AETC.
History
Postwar era
Formation On 1 July 1946, Army Air Forces Training Command was re-designated as Air Training Command (ATC). Since the end of World War II in September 1945, AAF Training Command had been undergoing rapid contraction, actually begun earlier in 1945 as planners understood the changing forces of the war against Nazi Germany, which ended in May 1945. Excess training bases across the United States had begun to be shut down and units consolidated during the summer of 1945 as the training needs of the USAAF was being refocused to support the requirements of those USAAF combat units in the war against Imperial Japan. The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 and the end of the war in the Pacific in September 1945 began a rapid demobilization of the U.S. armed forces. Large numbers of temporary training bases were closed and units were discontinued in late 1945 and early 1946 as the US military transitioned from a wartime footing to a peacetime one.
For that reason, ATC was organized in the summer of 1946 to become the main training organization of the postwar USAAF. One of the major organizational changes of the postwar USAAF was the elimination of the "command" organizational echelon. While most wartime Commands became "Air Divisions" in the postwar USAAF table of organization, the USAAF Training Command was elevated to the major air command echelon along with the new Tactical Air Command (TAC), Strategic Air Command (SAC) and Air Defense Command (ADC).
Organization ATC was organized around the AAFTC's Flying Training Command and Technical Training Commands, which were redesignated as the ATC Flying and Technical Training Divisions on 1 November 1946. A third Division was formed with the creation of the ATC Indoctrination Division, which was organized around the Military Training Center in San Antonio, Texas (which had earlier been a part of Technical Training Command). All three Divisions of ATC were co-equal in status.
In June 1946, the USAAF discontinued the World War II Flying Training Wings allocated to AAFTC and each training installation was commanded by its designated Army Air Forces Base Unit (AAFBU). In September 1947, upon establishment of the United States Air Force (USAF) as an independent service, the AAFBUs on the permanent Army Air Forces bases became Air Force Base Units (AFBU) upon the bases' transfer to the USAF. By mid-1948, with the adoption by the USAF of the Hobson Plan Wing-Base organization (as opposed to the AFBU Base organization), the AFBUs were discontinued or redesignated in favor of new USAF four-digit "table of distribution units" established by USAF or the Major Commands.
The Army Air Forces had set a post-war goal of 70 groups; however, Congress balked at funding the ambitious undertaking. Instead, the USAAF had to downscale its plans, settling on 55 groups. Congress passed the National Security Act of September 1947, and soon after, the Air Force became a separate service with its own civilian service secretary, equal to the Army and Navy.
By 31 December 1947, the USAF was 55 groups strong, with ATC being allocated thirteen (13) training bases. Earlier in the year, the ATC commander, Lieutenant General John K. Cannon, had told General Carl A. Spaatz, USAF Chief of Staff, that ATC would do all it could to bring the new groups up to strength, but the training capability of ATC was extremely limited due to a severe lack of personnel and training funds.
The initial training bases of Air Training Command were:
Randolph Field (later Randolph Air Force Base), Texas 2532d Army Air Forces (later Air Force) Base Unit 3510th Pilot Training Wing (Basic)
Barksdale Field (Barksdale Air Force Base), LouisianaConducted flying training and was HQ AAFTC location from 25 February 1946 until 17 October 1949; transferred to Strategic Air Command 331st Army Air Forces (later Air Force) Base Unit 3500th Pilot Training Wing (Advanced, Multi-Engine)
Chanute Field (later Chanute Air Force Base), Illinois 3502d Army Air Forces Base Unit (Technical School) 3345th Technical Training Wing
Fort Francis E. Warren (later F. E. Warren Air Force Base), Wyoming 3502d Army Air Forces (later Air Force) Base Unit (Technical School) 3450th Technical Training WingMueller, Robert, Air Force Bases Volume I, Active Air Force Bases Within the United States of America on 17 September 1982, Office of Air Force History, 1989
Goodfellow Field (later Goodfellow Air Force Base), TexasInactive 1 July 1946 – 1 December 1947 2533d Army Air Forces Base Unit 3545th Pilot Training Wing (Basic)
Keesler Field (later Keesler Air Force Base), Mississippi 3704th Army Air Forces Base Unit (Technical School and Basic Training Center) 3380th Technical Training Wing
Lackland Field (later Lackland Air Force Base), Texas 3502d Army Air Forces (later Air Force) Base Unit (Indoctrination Training) 3700th Military Training Wing
Las Vegas Field (later Las Vegas Air Force Base,later Nellis Air Force Base), NevadaInactive 28 August 1946 – 1 April 1948 3006th Army Air Forces Base Unit 3595th Pilot Training Wing (Advanced, Single-Engine)
Lowry Field (later Lowry Air Force Base), Colorado 3705th Army Air Forces Base Unit (Technical School) 3415th Technical Training Wing
Mather Field (later Mather Air Force Base), California 1505th Army Air Forces (later Air Force) Base Unit 3535th Bombardier Training Wing
San Marcos Field, Texas (later San Marcos Air Force Base, later Gary Air Force Base)Inactive 30 November 1945 – 1 May 1946; Closed 1 March 1949 2456th Army Air Forces (later Air Force) Base Unit 3585th Pilot Training Wing (Liaison-Helicopter)
Scott Field (later Scott Air Force Base), Illinois 3505th Army Air Forces Base Unit (Technical School) 3310th Technical Training Wing
Williams Field (later Williams Air Force Base), Arizona 3010th Army Air Forces (later Air Force) Base Unit 3525th Pilot Training Wing (Advanced, Single-Engine)
Training
ATC's Flying Division began its first jet fighter transition course at Williams Field in 1946. However, by early 1947, the USAAF had sped up its conversion to jet aircraft. The only way training needs could be met was by limiting course quotas to commands already using jet aircraft. Also, the training program was handicapped by the fact that no dual-control jet trainer aircraft existed.Manning, Jet Fighter Training, p. 48.
In addition, the pilot training program was consolidated into two classes, Basic and Advanced. Also, the wide variety of training aircraft were reduced to streamline the training program. Jet training aircraft and courses were also added, along with helicopter training as the new wartime technologies were added into the postwar Air Force inventory as fully operational weapons systems. Austere postwar military budgets led to additional consolidations and all of the flying programs suffered from shortages of aircraft replacement parts, qualified maintenance personnel, and instructors...problems that existed with the schools throughout the early postwar era.Manning, Basic Flying Training, p. 49.
Technical Division was given the responsibility of assembling and training two specialized arctic training teams. Their mission was to indoctrinate USAAF (later USAF) units and individuals destined for polar assignments in personal survival and in the care and use of equipment in cold weather climates.Manning, Polar Mobile Training Units, p. 45. In March 1947, budgetary cuts caused a major reduction in force of graded civilian employees. Technical Division had no choice but to fill empty civilian instructor slots with military personnel. That left the schools with a high percentage of instructors with little, if any, teaching experience and, in some cases, very limited knowledge of course material. In fact, many of these new instructors had just graduated from the courses they were now expected to teach.Manning, Cutbacks in Technical Training, p. 49.
Indoctrination Division consolidated all basic training at what became Lackland Air Force Base in 1946.Manning, Basic Military Training, p. 46. Separation criteria were progressively lowered for both officer and enlisted personnel as part of the postwar demobilization. Training Command losses from separations were not made up by gains from recruits and returnees and shortages were particularly acute in maintenance, mess, clerical, and medical personnel.Manning, Separations, p. 46. In 1948, Air Training Command began rebuilding its training complex, but the command was still reeling from the heavy losses it sustained in its instructor force by demobilization.Manning, 1948 overview, p. 53.
Berlin Airlift By 1948, ATC was still reeling from the heavy losses it sustained in its instructor force in 1947. Then the personnel withdrawals that had to be made in support of the Berlin Airlift and the expansion of Strategic Air Command combined to handicap even more the training bases at the same time that pilot production increased. Plans called for ATC to add five additional flight training bases and by year's end the command had already activated four: Perrin AFB, Texas; Enid AFB, Oklahoma; Waco AFB, Texas; and Las Vegas AFB, Nevada.
In a 17 September letter to the field, Headquarters USAF directed all commands to release many highly experienced personnel in support of the Berlin Airlift. Officials in Air Training Command were so concerned about the effect this loss of personnel would have on mission accomplishment that a return letter was sent to Washington asking which of the new flying training bases—Waco or Enid—was to be written off. The only way ATC was able to provide personnel for these schools was by taking individuals from other bases.
Consolidation of Divisions