Sixth Air Force

Sixth Air Force


The first air units arrived in the Canal Zone in February 1917. By 1940, a rapid increase in the number of units warranted a new organization, and the Panama Canal Air Force was created as a major command. When the command inactivated in 1976, most of its functions and resources passed to the Tactical Air Command, which established an air division as the major organization in the area.

Lineage
Established as Panama Canal Air Force on October 19, 1940. Activated as a major command on November 20, 1940. Redesignated: Caribbean Air Force on August 5, 1941; 6th Air Force on September 18, 1942; Caribbean Air Command on July 31, 1946; United States Air Forces Southern Command on July 8, 1963. Inactivated on January 1, 1976.