United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the aerial and space warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the five branches of the United States Armed Forces, and one of the seven American uniformed services. Initially formed as a part of the United States Army on 1 August 1907, the USAF was established as a separate branch of the U.S. Armed Forces on 18 September 1947 with the passing of the National Security Act of 1947. It is the youngest branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, and the fourth in order of precedence. The USAF is the largest and most technologically advanced air force in the world. The Air Force articulates its core missions as air and space superiority, global integrated intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, rapid global mobility, global strike, and command and control.
Aviation Cadet Training Program (USAAF)
In September 1947, the U.S. Army Air Forces became a separate and independent service, renamed the United States Air Force (USAF). At the time, the newly created Air Force had no service academy of its own yet (the USMA and USNA had options for their cadets and midshipmen, respectively, to become USAF officers). Separate Air Force ROTC and Officer Candidate School (later retitled Officer Training School) programs were still being established. The Aviation Cadet Training Program continued to remain as a principal source of the Air Force's pilots and navigators and they wore the same basic uniform as Air Force officers.