What is United States Army Air Force?
[[File:US_Army_Air_Corps_Hap_Arnold_Wings.svg|200px|right|thumb|Badge of the United States Army Air Force]] The '''United States Army Air Forces''' ('''USAAF''') was the military aviation arm of the [[United States of America]] during and immediately after [[World War II]]. It was the direct precursor to the [[United States Air Force]], established in [[1947]]. At its peak strength in [[1944]], the USAAF had over 2.4 million men and women in service, nearly 80,000 aircraft and 783 permanent bases, and operated from more than 2,000 airfields worldwide. ==History== The [[United States Army Air Corps|Air Corps]] became the Army Air Forces in June [[1941]] to provide the air arm a greater autonomy in which to expand more efficiently, and to provide a structure for the additional command echelons required by a vastly increased force. Although other nations already had separate air forces independent of the army or navy (such as the British [[Royal Air Force]] and the German [[Luftwaffe]]), the USAAF remained a part of the [[United States Army]]. {{US-stub}} {{authority control}} [[Category:United States Air Force]] [[Category:1941 establishments in the United States]] [[Category:1947 disestablishments in the United States]]