05/02/2019 Air officer commanding - Wikipedia

Air officer commanding
Air officer commanding (AOC) is a title given in the air forces of Commonwealth (and some other) nations to an
air officer who holds a command appointment which typically comprises a large, organized collection of air force
assets.[1] Thus, an air vice marshal might be the AOC 38 Group. The equivalent term for army officers is general officer
commanding (GOC), from where the air force term was derived.

An air officer heading a particularly large or important command may be called an air officer commanding-in-chief
(AOC-in-C).

Contents
Royal Air Force usage
Indian Air Force usage
United States Air Force usage
References

Royal Air Force usage
In the RAF those air officers who command a group are styled air officer commanding, followed by the name of the
group. Currently, there are five AOCs:

AOC 1 Group
AOC 2 Group
AOC 11 Group[2]
AOC 22 Group
AOC 38 Group
This title is also used for the appointment of the United Kingdom Air Component Commander in the Middle East, who
is dual-hatted as AOC 83 Expeditionary Air Group.

Indian Air Force usage
In the IAF, Air Commodores who command Wings, Base Repair Depots, Equipment Depots are styled as Air Officer
Commanding (AOC). Similarly, Air Vice Marshals commanding Groups (J&K Group & Maritime Air Ops Group (HQ
Mumbai)) and Advance Headquarters are styled as Air Officer Commanding (AOC). Air Marshals who command the
Seven Air Commands are styled as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief. The Seven AOC-in-C's are :

AOC-in-C, Western Air Command

AOC-in-C, Central Air Command
AOC-in-C, Eastern Air Command
AOC-in-C, Southern Air Command
AOC-in-C, South Western Air Command
AOC-in-C, Training Command
AOC-in-C, Maintenance Command
Also Air Marshals who command a Tri Services (Joint) Command are Styled as Commander in Chief (C-in-C). The C-
in-C level posts are:

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05/02/2019 Air officer commanding - Wikipedia

C-in-C, Strategic Forces Command (SFC)

C-in-C, Andaman & Nicobar Command (ANC)

United States Air Force usage
In the United States Air Force, the term "Air Officer Commanding" is used specifically to refer to the specially selected
officers who command cadet squadrons and groups at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs,
Colorado. In the case of a cadet squadron, the AOC is normally a major; in the case of a cadet group, the AOC is
normally a lieutenant colonel. These officers exercise command authority over their cadet units and are expected to
train cadets in officership and military matters, advise the cadets who hold leadership positions in the unit, and act as
role models for the future officers.

Although the vast majority of AOCs at the academy are, logically, United States Air Force officers, a small number may
come from the other U.S. military branches, at least one from each of the other three branches at a given point in time.
While holding these positions at the academy, these officers are still referred to as "Air Officers Commanding" despite
their being Army, Navy or Marine officers who may or may not be aviators.

References
1. Bowyer, Richard Dictionary of Military Terms, p. 6 (https://books.google.com/books?id=U2SyST6KUJMC&lpg=PA6
&dq=%22Air%20officer%22&pg=PA6#v=onepage&q=%22Air%20officer%22&f=false)
2. Mander, Simon, ed. (16 November 2018). "Standing up to the cyber threat". RAF News (1455). p. 23. ISSN 0035-
8614 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0035-8614).

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This page was last edited on 26 November 2018, at 19:52 (UTC).

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