View source for Twenty-First Air Force

{{Use American English|date=May 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{Infobox military unit
|unit_name=Twenty-First Air Force
|image=21st Air Force.png
|caption=Shield of the Twenty-First Air Force
|dates=5 September 2025 - present. Previously: 18 June 1942 – 19 March 2012<br/>({{Age in years and months|1942|6|18|2012|3|19}})
|country={{flag|United States|23px}}
|branch={{air force|USA}}
|type=
|role=
|size=
|command_structure=[[Air Mobility Command]]
|garrison= 
|garrison_label=
|nickname=
|patron=
|motto=
|colors=
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|march=
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|equipment=
|equipment_label=
|battles=[[File:World War II - American Campaign Streamer (Plain).png|150px]]<br/>World War II – American Theater
|anniversaries=
|decorations=[[File:US Air Force Outstanding Unit Award - Stremer.jpg|150px]]<br/>Air Force Outstanding Unit Award (19x)
|battle_honours=
<!-- Commanders -->
|commander1=
|commander1_label= Current commander
|commander2=
|commander2_label= Current vice-commander
|commander3=
|commander3_label= Current command chief
|notable_commanders=
<!-- Insignia -->
|identification_symbol=[[File:21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force.png|150px]]
|identification_symbol_label=21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force emblem
}}

The '''Twenty-First Air Force''' ('''21 AF''') is an active [[numbered air force]] of the [[United States Air Force]]. It was reactivated on September 5, 2025 during a ceremony hosted at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst. It had been inactive since 2003, when it was previously designated as the '''21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force''' ('''21 EMTF'''), headquartered at the [[McGuire AFB]] entity of [[Joint Base McGuire–Dix–Lakehurst]] until its inactivation in 2012. In this capacity, it was subordinate to [[Air Mobility Command]]'s [[Eighteenth Air Force]].

First created as a wing of the [[United States Army Air Forces]] during World War II, the unit initially ferried aircraft, but its mission soon changed to airlifting personnel and cargo.

The organization was redesignated several times, eventually becoming the Twenty-First Air Force in 1966.

In 2003, the unit was redesignated as the 21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force, assuming responsibility for worldwide airlift operations in support of [[United States Joint Forces Command]], [[United States European Command]], and [[United States Central Command]].

In 2012, the organization was inactivated, with its subordinate units and responsibilities being transferred to the [[United States Air Force Expeditionary Center]].

==Mission==
{{unreferenced section|date=June 2023}}
[[File:Boeing KC-135R-BN Stratotanker 61-0305.jpg|thumb|A 6th Air Mobility Wing KC-135 Stratotanker takes off from the flightline at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida.]]

The 21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force (EMTF) provided a rapid, tailored, worldwide, air mobility response to combatant commander's needs. Reporting through [[Eighteenth Air Force]], the EMTF extended existing AMC infrastructure, through both en route employment and rapid forward deployment capabilities.

Its mission was to command and assess the combat readiness of assigned air mobility forces over the Atlantic half of the globe in support of Global Reach. These forces were at more than 55 locations in eight countries. 21 EMTF's major units included six active duty wings, two operational flying groups, and two mobility operations/support groups. Additionally, the 21 EMTF was liaison to 40 Air Reserve Component Wings.

21 EMTF's strategic airlift force included the [[C-5 Galaxy]], [[C-17 Globemaster III]] and the [[C-130 Hercules]], aircraft, used to move cargo and passengers worldwide. The tanker force included [[KC-10 Extender]]s and [[KC-135 Stratotanker]]s used for inflight refueling to provide increased global mobility.

In addition to the Task Force's airlift and refueling mission, the [[89th Airlift Wing]] at [[Andrews Air Force Base]], Maryland provided worldwide administrative airlift support to the President of the United States and other top government officials flying the C-20, C-21, C-32, VC-25 (Air Force One), VC-137, and UH-1 aircraft.

==Units==
{{unreferenced section|date=June 2023}}
[[File:315th-c-17-charleston.jpg|180px|thumb|A 315th Airlift Wing C-17 Globemaster II flying over the new Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge, Charleston Harbor, South Carolina.]]
{{Col-begin}}
{{Col-break|width=50%}}
* [[6th Air Mobility Wing|6th Air Refueling Wing]]
: [[MacDill Air Force Base]], Florida
* [[19th Airlift Wing]]
: [[Little Rock Air Force Base]], Arkansas
* [[43rd Air Mobility Operations Group]]
: [[Pope Field]], North Carolina
* [[87th Air Base Wing]]
: [[Joint Base McGuire–Dix–Lakehurst]], New Jersey
* [[305th Air Mobility Wing]]
: [[Joint Base McGuire–Dix–Lakehurst]], New Jersey
{{Col-break|width=50%}}
* [[436th Airlift Wing]]
: [[Dover Air Force Base]], Delaware
* [[437th Airlift Wing]]
: [[Joint Base Charleston]], South Carolina
* [[521st Air Mobility Operations Wing]]
: [[Ramstein Air Base]], Germany
* [[621st Contingency Response Wing]]
: [[Joint Base McGuire–Dix–Lakehurst]], New Jersey
* [[628th Air Base Wing]]
: [[Joint Base Charleston]], South Carolina
{{Col-end}}

==History==
[[File:21st Air Force - ETAF - Emblem.png|thumb|150px|left|1966 emblem of the 21st Air Force, based on the MATS Eastern Transport Air Force emblem]]
The organization was first established in June 1942 as the '''23rd Army Air Forces Ferry Wing''', ferrying aircraft before changing missions to airlift personnel and cargo the next month.<ref name="21EMTFfacts">{{Cite web |last=Robertson |first=Patsy |date=March 2011 |title=21 Expeditionary Mobility Task Force (AMC) |url=https://www.dafhistory.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/432351/21-expeditionary-mobility-task-force-amc/ |access-date=2023-06-24 |publisher=[[Air Force Historical Research Agency]] |language=en-US}}</ref>

Under [[Military Air Transport Service]], Eastern Transport Air Force (EASTAF), headquartered at [[McGuire AFB]], New Jersey, controlled all strategic airlift operations between the [[Mississippi River]] and the east coast of Africa and in [[Central America|Central]] and South America.{{cn|date=June 2023}}

When MATS became [[Military Airlift Command]], EASTAF was redesignated Twenty-First Air Force, with the same area of responsibility. In addition to [[Dover AFB]], other major 21st AF bases were [[Charleston AFB]], South Carolina and McGuire AFB, NJ. Depending upon command organization at different times, airlift and airlift support units in Europe, the [[Azores]], [[Bermuda]] and throughout the southeastern United States also reported to EASTAF or 21st AF.{{cn|date=June 2023}}

In October 1983 Charleston AFB Security Police Airbase Ground Defense Team conducted security operations in Grenada  (Operation Urgent Fury) at Point Salinas Airport.  In [[Operation Just Cause]], Twenty-first Air Force units conducted the largest night airdrop since World War II, leading to the successful seizure of [[Panama]]. From August 1990, Twenty-first Air Force controlled the largest airlift in history, moving forces for [[Operation Desert Shield]] and, later, [[Operation Desert Storm]]. Later in the decade Twenty-First Air Force was involved in operations in [[Bosnia]] and repeated deployments to the Middle East directed against Iraq.{{cn|date=June 2023}}

The command also supported peaceful, humanitarian missions. Twenty-first Air Force units flew relief missions after [[Hurricane Hugo]] (1989) and [[Hurricane Andrew|Andrew]] (1992), earthquakes in [[Armenia]] and San Francisco, and many other natural disasters. In addition, it controlled the [[Operation Provide Comfort]] airlift missions to the Kurds following the Persian Gulf War, the [[Operation Provide Hope]] airlift in the aftermath of the collapse of the [[Soviet Union]], and participated in [[Operation Restore Hope]], the humanitarian airlift of food and supplies into [[Somalia]].{{cn|date=June 2023}}

The ETF supported numerous exercises around the world, one of which was CENTRAZBAT, in which C-17's flew multi-national paratroopers non-stop from [[Pope AFB]], North Carolina, airdropping them directly into the Central Asian countries of [[Uzbekistan]] and [[Kazakhstan]] demonstrating the capabilities of direct delivery. The command could operate in remote, often austere locations throughout Europe, Africa, and South America.{{cn|date=June 2023}}

On 1 October 2003, the 21st Air Force was redesignated as the 21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force and given a new mission set as a component of the [[Eighteenth Air Force]].<ref name="pike">{{Cite web |last=Pike |first=Christopher |date=2012-03-13 |title=Expeditionary Task Force inactivates, 70-year tradition to continue |url=https://www.expeditionarycenter.af.mil/News/Commentaries/Display/Article/439085/expeditionary-task-force-inactivates-70-year-tradition-to-continue/ |access-date=2023-06-24 |publisher=[[United States Air Force Expeditionary Center]] |language=en-US}}</ref> In this capacity, the organization supported [[United States Joint Forces Command]], [[United States European Command]], and [[United States Central Command]].<ref name="ASPJ">{{Cite journal |last=Wilkes |first=Bobby J. |last2=Stinnette |first2=Murrell F. |last3=Reed |first3=Randall |author-link3=Randall Reed |title=Expeditionary Mobility Task Force |url=https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA521681.pdf |journal=[[Air and Space Power Journal]] |volume=19 |issue=2 |pages=15-22 |via=[[Defense Technical Information Center]]}}</ref>

The 21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force was inactivated on 19 March 2012, with its responsibilities and subordinate units being transferred to the [[United States Air Force Expeditionary Center]].<ref name="inactivation">{{Cite web |date=19 March 2012 |title=21st EMTF inactivates, expands EC's role in global air mobility |url=https://www.jbmdl.jb.mil/News/Article/244033/21st-emtf-inactivates-expands-ecs-role-in-global-air-mobility/ |access-date=29 September 2012 |publisher=[[621st Contingency Response Wing|621st Contingency Response Wing Public Affairs]]}}</ref>

===Lineage===
[[File:Etaf-routes-1964.jpg|thumb|Routes of the Eastern Transport Air Force, 1964]]
* Established as '''23rd Army Air Forces (AAF) Ferrying Wing''' on 12 June 1942
: Activated on 18 June 1942
: Redesignated '''North Atlantic Wing''' on 5 July 1942
: Redesignated '''North Atlantic Division''' on 27 June 1944
: Redesignated '''Atlantic Division''' on 20 September 1945
: Redesignated '''Atlantic Division''' on 1 June 1948
: Redesignated '''Eastern Transport Air Force''' on 1 July 1958
: Redesignated '''Twenty-First Air Force''' on 3 January 1966
: Redesignated '''21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force''' on 1 October 2003<ref name="21EMTFfacts"/>
: Inactivated on 19 March 2012<ref name="inactivation"/>
: Redesignated '''Twenty-First Air Force''' on 30 March 2012{{cn|date=June 2023}}
: Reactivated on 05 September 2025

===Assignments===
* AAF Ferrying Command, 12 June 1942
* [[Air Transport Command (United States Air Force)|Air Transport Command]], 5 July 1942
* Air Transport Service (USAF), 15 October 1947
* [[Military Air Transport Service]], 1 June 1948
* [[Military Airlift Command]], 1 January 1966
* [[Air Mobility Command]], 1 June 1992
* [[Eighteenth Air Force]], 1 October 2003<ref name="21EMTFfacts"/>
* [[Air Mobility Command]], 5 September 2025

===Major components===
* [[76th Air Division]], 1 March 1976 – 30 September 1977; 15 December 1980 – 1 October 1985
* [[322d Air Division|322nd Air (later, Airlift) Division]], 3 January 1966 – 24 December 1968; 23 June 1978 – 1 April 1992<ref name="21EMTFfacts"/>
* [[839th Air Division]], 1–31 December 1974{{cn|date=June 2023}}
* [[621st Contingency Response Wing]], 22 July 1994 – 19 March 2012<ref>{{Cite web |last=Musser |first=James M. |date=2018-06-05 |title=621 Contingency Response Wing (AMC) |url=https://www.dafhistory.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/1055546/621-contingency-response-wing-amc/ |access-date=2023-06-24 |publisher=[[Air Force Historical Research Agency]] |language=en-US}}</ref>
* [[721st Air Mobility Operations Group]], 1 April 1994 – 4 September 2008<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lacomia |first=John M. |date=2018-04-27 |title=721 Air Mobility Operations Group (AMC) |url=https://www.dafhistory.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/1507226/721-air-mobility-operations-group-amc/ |access-date=2023-06-24 |publisher=[[Air Force Historical Research Agency]] |language=en-US}}</ref>
* [[521st Air Mobility Operations Wing]], 4 September 2008 – 19 March 2012<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lacomia |first=John M. |date=2018-04-27 |title=521 Air Mobility Operations Wing (AMC) |url=https://www.dafhistory.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/433514/521-air-mobility-operations-wing-amc/ |access-date=2023-06-24 |publisher=[[Air Force Historical Research Agency]] |language=en-US}}</ref>

===Stations===
* [[Presque Isle Air Force Base|Presque Isle AAF]], Maine, 12 June 1942
* [[Fort Totten, New York]], 20 September 1945
* [[Westover Joint Air Reserve Base|Westover AAF (later, AFB)]], Massachusetts, 1 October 1947
* [[McGuire AFB]], New Jersey, 1 June 1955<ref name="21EMTFfacts"/>

==References==
{{Air Force Historical Research Agency}}
{{Reflist}}
* Snedeker, Clayton H. ''Twenty-first Air Force: Chronology of Significant Events, 1966–present''. McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey: 21st Air Force Office of History, 1990.

==External links==
* [https://www.jbmdl.jb.mil/ Air Force Link: 21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force fact sheet]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070810183033/http://afhra.maxwell.af.mil/rso/numbered_airforce_index.html#21af Air Force Historical Research Agency: Twenty-First Air Force]

{{USAF Air Mobility Command}}
{{US Air Force navbox}}
{{Military Airlift Command}}

[[Category:Numbered air forces of the United States Air Force|21]]
[[Category:Air Forces of the United States Army Air Forces|21]]
[[Category:Transport units and formations of the United States Air Force]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 2003]]