AETC Mission and Vision

Air Education and Training Command, with headquarters at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas, was established and activated in January 1942, making it the second oldest major command in the Air Force. AETC’s training mission makes it the first command to touch the lives of nearly every Air Force member. AETC was formed in 1942 as the Army Air Corps Flying Training Command with headquarters in Washington, D.C. Less than a year later, the headquarters moved to Fort Worth, Texas. During World War II the command provided technical and flying training at more than 600 installations, factories and institutions of higher learning. The headquarters moved to Barksdale AFB, Louisiana, in 1946, to Scott AFB, Illinois, in 1949, and finally to Randolph AFB in 1957. In July 1993, Air Training Command and Air University merged to form AETC. This redesignation allowed the command to retain all of its previous heritage and honors. The 2005 Base Realignment and Closure plan renamed Randolph Air Force Base, Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph. Over the years, more than 25 million students have graduated from AETC training and education programs.

AETC includes Air Force Recruiting Service, a numbered air force and the Air University. The command operates 12 major installations and supports tenant units on numerous bases across the globe. There are also 16 active duty and seven Reserve wings.

MISSION

Find, recruit, train and educate the Airmen the nation needs.
We take America’s sons and daughters – young men and women who have volunteered to serve their country in a time of war – and develop them into Airmen. Develop denotes more than educating or training them – it implies bringing them to embrace our culture, teaching them (by our example) our core values of integrity, service before self and excellence in all we do. 

VISION

Develop Airmen with the competencies to win the high-end competition. 

Air Force Mission

The mission of the United States Air Force is to fly, fight and win...airpower anytime, anywhere.

To achieve that mission, the Air Force has a vision:

With a Total Force of more than 689,000 personnel, Airmen work to support all aspects of airpower, which includes five core functions: air superiority; global strike; rapid global mobility; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; and command and control. Airpower also requires people and resources dedicated to unit readiness, base infrastructure and talent management.


Air Superiority: Combat power, regardless of Service, often depends on the Air Force’s ability to deliver air superiority.

Global Strike: Because of technological advances, the Air Force can attack anywhere, anytime -- and do so quickly and with greater precision than ever before.

Rapid Global Mobility: Being able to respond quickly and decisively anywhere we're needed is key to maintaining rapid global mobility.

Precision Engagement: The essence lies in the ability to apply selective force against specific targets because the nature and variety of future contingencies demand both precise and reliable use of military power with minimal risk and collateral damage.

Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance: The Air Force conducts intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions to analyze, inform, and provide joint force commanders with the knowledge needed to achieve decision advantage.

Command and Control: Combatant commanders require an agile military that operates seamlessly across domain boundaries at both speed and scale.
The Air Force bases these core competencies and distinctive capabilities on a shared commitment to three core values -- integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do.