United States Air Force facts for kids
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the aerial warfare branch of the United States armed forces and one of the seven uniformed services. It was a part of the United States Army until September 18, 1947. The USAF is the largest and most of technologically advanced air force in the world. It has thousands of aircraft in service including bombers, fighter aircraft, transports and other kinds, and hundreds of Intercontinental ballistic missiles. Hundreds of thousands of men and women are on active duty in the Air Force and others are in the Reserves and the United States National Guard.
Officer Ranks
Pay grade | O-1 | O-2 | O-3 | O-4 | O-5 | O-6 | O-7 | O-8 | O-9 | O-10 | Special |
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Title | Second Lieutenant |
First Lieutenant |
Captain | Major | Lieutenant Colonel |
Colonel | Brigadier General |
Major General |
Lieutenant General |
General | General of the Air Force |
Abbreviation2 | 2d Lt | 1st Lt | Capt | Maj | Lt Col | Col | Brig Gen | Maj Gen | Lt Gen | Gen | GAF |
NATO Code | OF-1 | OF-2 | OF-3 | OF-4 | OF-5 | OF-6 | OF-7 | OF-8 | OF-9 | OF-10 | |
1 Awarded as an honorary rank or during periods of a declared war. |
Warrant officers
The Air Force warrant officer ranks, while authorized by law, are not used.
Enlisted airmen
US DoD Pay grade | E-1 | E-2 | E-3 | E-4 | E-5 | E-6 | E-7 | E-8 | E-9 | |||||
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Insignia | No Insignia | ![]() |
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Title | Airman Basic |
Airman | Airman First Class |
Senior Airman |
Staff Sergeant |
Technical Sergeant |
Master Sergeant¹ |
Senior Master Sergeant¹ |
Chief Master Sergeant¹ |
Command Chief Master Sergeant |
Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force |
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Abbreviation | AB | Amn | A1C | SrA | SSgt | TSgt | MSgt | SMSgt | CMSgt | CCM | CMSAF | |||
NATO Code | OR-1 | OR-2 | OR-3 | OR-4 | OR-5 | OR-6 | OR-7 | OR-8 | OR-9 | OR-9 | OR-9 | |||
¹ The USAF does not have a separate First Sergeant rank; it is instead a duty denoted by a diamond within the upper field. |
Images for kids
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The first F-35 Lightning II of the 33rd Fighter Wing arriving at Eglin AFB
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An Air Force A-10 demonstrating close air support at Nellis AFB
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The SR-71 Blackbird was a Cold War reconnaissance plane.
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A row of Douglas C-54 Skymasters during the Berlin Airlift in 1949
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A C-17 Globemaster III, the USAF's newest and most versatile transport plane
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E-3 Sentry airborne warning and control system
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F-22 Raptor stealth air superiority fighter
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Lockheed U-2 spy plane