United States Secretary of the Air Force : Ask Biography

Government Agency

Agency name

Office of the Secretary of the Air Force

Agency overview

Formed

1947

Headquarters

Pentagon

Operational structure

Parent agency

Department of the Air Force

Home | US Navy | United States Secretary of the Air Force

The Secretary of the Air Force (SECAF, or SAF/OS) is the Head of the Department of the Air Force, a component organization within the Department of Defense of the United States of America. The Secretary of the Air Force is appointed from civilian life by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Secretary reports to the Secretary of Defense and/or the Deputy Secretary of Defense, and is by statute responsible for and has the authority to conduct all the affairs of the Department of the Air Force.

The Secretary works closely with his/her civilian deputy, the Under Secretary of the Air Force; and his/her military deputy, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, who is the senior ranked uniformed officer in the United States Air Force.

The first Secretary of the Air Force, Stuart Symington, was sworn-in on September 18, 1947 upon the re-organization of the Army Air Forces into a military department and a military service of its own, independent of the War Department/Army, with the enactment of the National Security Act.